Narrative of a mission to Bokhara, in the years 1843-1845, to ascertain the fate of Colonel Stoddart and Captain Conolly

*7

NARRATIVE

OF A

MISSION TO BOKHARA.

Vol. II

NARRATIVE

OF A

MISSION TO BOKHARA,

IN THE YEARS 1343-1845,
TO ASCERTAIN

THE FATE OF COLONEL STODDART AND
CAPTAIN CONOLLY;

BY THE

REV. JOSEPH WOLFF, D.D., LL.D.

IN TWO VOLUMES.

VOL. II.

LONDON:

PUBLISHED, FOB, THE AUTHOR,

BY JOHN W. PARKER, WEST STRAND.

M.DCCC.XLV.

vi CONTENTS.

Russian Slaves refused Liberation. Conversation with the Officers
of the Nayeb. Hassan Shirazi ----- 24 — 47

CHAPTER XIV.

Disasters of the Seikh Army in Lassa. Csoma de Koros; his Re-
searches ; publishes a Dictionary of the Thibet Language. The Sur-
veillance over Dr. "Wolff grows more rigid. Barhurdar, an Arme-
nian, ordered not to visit Dr. Wolff by the Ameer. Nasir Khayr
Ullah, a Kaffer Seeah Poosh, mistaken for Colonel Stoddart from
the fairness of his complexion. Conversation between Dr. Wolff
and the Nayeb. Letter of Sir Richmond Shakspeare. The Nayeb
detains in his possession the Letter of Lord Ellenborough to the
Ameer. Nayeb alarmed ; advises Dr. Wolff to communicate to the
Ameer the fact of the Letter having arrived; Dr. Wolff does so.
Hassan Caboolee dispatched. Dr. Wolff discovers that, though
apparently sent, he did not really go. Affghaun Bear Leader
imprisoned as a Spy; he tells Dr. Wolff that the Ameer sent a
Lion to Russia as a Present to the Czar, for which his Ambassador
was munificently rewarded; but that the Czar refused after the
Execution of the British Officers to hold any further Intercourse
with the Ameer. The Ameer goes to war with Khokand and
Oratepa; orders in his absence the Guards over Dr. Wolff to be
doubled, and tells him that his Departure will depend on the success
of his Expedition. Dr. Wolff writes to Lady Georgiana and his
Son. Conversations with Dil Assa Khan, Abdullah, and others.
Dr. Wolff bribes the Guards. Previous War with Khokand ; King
made Prisoner and put to death by the Ameer of Bokhara ; his
Wife and Child barbarously murdered. Abdul Samut Khan the
chief Agent in the Slaughter. At the news of the Death of Stoddart
and Conolly the Inhabitants of Khokand renew the War. The
Ameer retreats before them and the Khivites. Dr. Wolff contrives
to acquaint the British Envoy at Teheraun of the movements of
the Ameer, and warns the Town of Shahr Sabz of the King's
intention to attack them. Ameer says that nothing prospers with
him since the Death of the English Officers. The King of Kho-
kand offers Dr. Wolff an Asylum in his Dominions - 48—60

CHAPTER XV.

The Mervee wish to know the Story of Napoleon ; Dr. Wolff recounts it
in an Oriental fashion. He amuses the tedious hours of Captivity

CONTENTS. vii

by telling various Anecdotes. His Anecdote of the Arabian Derveesli
reaches the ears of the Daster Khanjee, who reports it to the Ameer.
The Kasi Kelaun assures Dr. Wolff that the British Officers were
put to death, and that the King deeply repented of the act. The
Kasi Kelaun warned the Ameer of the Consequences. All the Jews
knew of the Execution the same day, and the Inhabitants of
Bokhara, in town and country, speak of it as a matter well known.
Dr. Wolff tells an Anecdote of Frederick the Great of Prussia. Dr.
Wolff laughs at Ameer Sarog's Vanity, and tells him the Tale of the
Derveesh with the White Beard 61—68

CHAPTER XVI.

Abdul Samut Khan told Dr. Wolff that he was the chief Instigator of
the Slaughter at Khokand in the first War ; his Motives were to
create a Feud between the States, which he trusted would end in
the Death of the Ameer. Abdul Samut Khan said that the first
Expedition against Khokand was by the advice of Russia. People of
Khokand have since made an Alliance with Russia. Policy of Russia
was to bring this about by urging the Ameer to war on them when
they would require Aid. Russians intend to erect a Fortress at
Hasrat Sultan. People from Cabal, Kashmeer, and Scinde call on
Dr. Wolff; they praise highly Sir Charles Napier. Affghauns from
Cabul ascribe the Disasters of the British Army to the Immoral
Conduct of the Officers. Determined Conduct of Major Rawlinson ;
he puts to Death an Affghaun for Murder. Manners and Customs
of the Muhammedan Mullahs. Diligence of Muhammedans in
copying the Koran; Propaganda and British and Foreign Bible
Society discharge the same Office by the Christians. The Bible
would be nearly extinct in the East but for these Societies. Arrival
of Abbas Kouli Khan, the Persian Ambassador; he tells Dr. Wolff
that the Shah, Haje, and Assaff-ood-Dowla had strongly recom-
mended him to bring Dr. Wolff with him, or to send him on before
him. Nayeb sends for Dr. Wolff; informs him that Yar Muham-
med Khan had sent three Ambassadors to Bokhara, stating that
Colonel Shell had called the Ameer a Robber in the presence of the
Russian and Yar Muhammed Khan's Ambassadors, of Dr. Wolff,
and the Bokhara Ambassador; therefore Yar Muhammed Khan
advised the Ameer to strike off Dr. Wolff's Head. Nayeb offers
Dr. Wolff his Protection. Turkish Officer dies suddenly in the
Nayeb's Garden. Another Conversation with the Nayeb. The
Nayeb reports Abba* Kouli Khan's Mission untruly. Dr. Wolff

viii CONTENTS.

tries to escape. The Nayeb violates his promise to protect Dr.
Wolff. The King sends for him. Dr. Wolff charges the Nayeb
with the Murder of Stoddart and Conolly; the Nayeb owns it.
Dr. Wolff again tries to escape through a Water Hole from the
Garden of the Nayeb to the House of the Yawer. While there a
Woman is introduced to him; he is aware of the Stratagem to
compel him by her means to embrace Muhammedanism, and drives
her from him. Ordered by the King to appear before him ; leaves
the Garden of Abdul Samut Khan; presents himself before the
Ameer, who receives him sternly. Ordered to the Toora Khane and
close Confinement ; calls on Abbas Kouli Khan, who vows to save
him. The King sends word to him that he may quit Bokhara in
two ways; leaves to His Majesty the choice of either. King sets
out for Samarcand 69—82

CHAPTER XVII.

Jews obtain leave from the Ameer to visit Dr. Wolff; they sing with
him, and ask for the Names of illustrious Jews who had embraced
Christianity; he tells them of several, viz., Emanuel Veith, M.D.,
Dr. Mayers, Dr. August Neander, Dr. Ratisbon, Isaac da Costa,
Dr. Kabbadose, Madame Dorothea Schlegel. Muhammed Bakher
Nakash, the Servant of Conolly, abjures Islam, and says the Chris-
tians are better Men than the Muhammedans ; he is brought before
the Sheikh Islam ; persists in his Avowal ; is sent to Prison, and
flogged. Ameer returns ; sends to Dr. Wolff a Mullah, to know
whether he will embrace the Muhammedan Religion ; Dr. Wolff
replies, Never. Executioner sent also. Letter from the Shah;
Haje Ibrahim, the Brother of Abdul Samut Khan, informs the
Nayeb of the Letter, and urges him to prevent Abbas Kouli Khan
from receiving it. Muhammed Bakher saved by Dr. Wolff.
Atrocities of Abdul Samut Khan; gets a Turkomaun beheaded,
who came to save Stoddart; also Ephraim, a Jew, from Meshed;
Prisoners in his Garden ; their Moanings and Wailings. Impression
throughout the Muhammedan Countries that England and Russia
will seize all those Regions. Remark to Dr. Wolff. Affghauns
praise the English. Habeeb, weeping, tells Dr. Wolff that he is
to die. Servants of Abdul Samut Khan announce his Death, and
show a Letter from Abdul Samut Khan to that effect. Dr. Wolff
makes up his mind to die, and writes in his Bible a Farewell to his
Family 83—93

CONTENTS. ix

CHAPTEE XVIII.

Colonel Sheil. Bad Conduct of Dr. Wolff's Servants. Remark of
Usbecks on the Treatment of Dr. Wolff. Questions put by the
Makhrams by order of the King to Dr. Wolff. Kindness of Abbas
Kouli Khan to Dr. Wolff; the noblest-minded Persian Dr. Wolff has
seen ; sends Dr. Wolff Food from his own Table ; places a Servant
with Dr. Wolff for his personal Safety ; sends his Physician to Dr.
Wolff to treat him for the Rishta. Abbas Kouli Khan and Dr. Wolff
read together. Various Reports of the Ameer's Proceedings. Abbas
Kouli Khan's Religious Opinions. Conversation with People of
Samarcand ; they tell Dr. Wolff of Gold Mines and Turquoises near
Samarcand; of Ghengis Khan and Tamerlane. Letter of Abbas
Kouli Khan to Lady Georgiana. Nayeb sends two thousand tillahs
to Dr. Wolff. The Letter of Lord Ellenborough reported to be at
Balkh ; arrives in forty days ; Seal broken. Abdul Samut Khan
leaves Bokhara for Samarcand; his Message to Dr. Wolff. Vile
Conduct of Abdullah ; tries to rob Dr. Wolff. Dr. Wolff wishes
the Jews to take charge of Abdul Samut Khan's Money; they
decline it, on the ground that Abdul Samut Khan would take it
from them, and make them pay for it. Letters arrive at Bokhara
from the Brother of Conolly; Dr. Wolff opens them. Abbas Kouli
Khan's continued Kindness to Dr. Wolff. The Jews visit Dr.
Wolff ; their curious method of Conversation. Dr. Wolff writes to
the " Sovereigns of Europe." A second Letter, with strict Instruc-
tions about Dr. Wolff's Safety, arrives from the Shah. Letter to
Captain Grover. Return of the Ameer and Abdul Samut Khan to
Bokhara. King reads Lord Ellenborough's Letter; determines in
his own mind, Abdul Samut Khan says, to kill Dr. Wolff. Others
say that Abdul Samut Khan advised him to do so. Abbas Kouli
Khan, Dil Assa Khan, and Dr. Wolff, visit the Ameer; he does not
look on Dr. Wolff. Letter to Lady Georgiana and his Son. All
Letters sent open by Dr. Wolff. Mullah sent to Dr. Wolff to know
if he would embrace Muhammedanism ; he replies, Never. Execu-
tioner visits him. Dr. Wolff prepares for Death. Abbas Kouli
Khan intimates to the Ameer that he has a Letter to deliver from
the Shah. The Ameer receives it, and gives Dr. Wolff up to
him - 94—108

CONTENTS.

CHAPTER XIX.

Ameer sends for the Servants of Abbas Kouli Khan and Dil Assa Khan,
but omits Dr. Wolff's by mistake, to give them Robes of Honour.
Interview with the Nayeb. Presents from the King. The Ameer
tells Dr. Wolff to ask a Favour of him ; Dr. Wolff declines doing*
so. Ameer determines to send an Ambassador to England. Vile
Conduct of Abdul Samut Khan. Audience of leave to depart.
Ameer commends the Conduct of Dr. Wolff; censures that of
Stoddart and Conolly. Reception in Bokhara by the People.
Murders committed by Abdul Samut Khan. First Plan by which
the Ameer might be effectually checked in his Atrocities. Second
Plan for same. English Honour requires some Notice to be taken
of the Ameer's Conduct. Character of Ameer ; brutal, lustful, tyran-
nical, but not so to the Poor ; fond of Information ; deeply affected
at having put to death Stoddart and Conolly. Dr. Wolff prefers
Ameer to Abdul Samut Khan. Description of Bokhara by Mr. Mac-
gregor. Population of Khiva. Trade of those Countries. Russian
Trade. Dignitaries of the State. Ecclesiastical Dignitaries. 109—128

CHAPTER XX.

Departure from Bokhara. Dr. Wolff discovers a Plot to kill and rob
him, en route. Thousands attend to witness their Departure. Dr.
Wolff refuses to separate from Abbas Kouli Khan. Arrival at
Jesman-Doo. Vile Conduct of Muhammed Taki. Abbas Kouli
Khan expresses his Displeasure. Derveesh of Yarkand; Conver-
sation with him. Affghaun Seyd; Conversation with him. The
Calmucks; their singular Conduct. Remarkable fine sense of
Smelling and Hearing in Turkomauns. Appearance of Usbecks.
Conversation with Abbas Kouli Khan; he thinks Abdul Samut
Khan was the Murderer of Colonel Stoddart and Captain Conolly.
Visit from a Mullah ; his Account of Timur. Shahr Sabz. Route —
Jesman-Doo; Shahr Islam. History of Afrasiab. Reports of Guzl-
Bash about the English. Mortesa and Abdullah advise Dr. Wolff to
leave Abbas Kouli Khan; he refuses. Peikand. Karakol. The
Governor of Karakol warns Dr. Wolff that a Plot is laid to take
away his life. Hussein. Route — Allat. The Caravan lose their way.
An attempt made by Ismael .and Mortesa to seize Dr. Wolff; he
calls on the Merchants of the Caravan to protect him. Sayen.
Dr. Wolff wishes to throw aAvay the Money in the Desert; Abbas
Kouli Khan takes it in his keeping - J 29— 14.°>

CONTENTS. xi

CHAPTER XXI.

Arrival at Jehaar-Joo. Abbas Kouli Khan calls on the Caravan to
protect Dr. Wolff*. Bokhara Ambassador demands Money from
Dr. Wolff. Rafitak. Bokharese Horsemen from the Ameer
demand Tribute. Dr. Wolff disconsolate. Arrival at Ujaaje.
Mowr. Caravan declared Prisoners. Ameer of Bokhara orders the
Turkomauns to release the Caravan ; they refuse to obey ; their
Khaleefa threatens to leave them if they injure the Caravan ; they
obey him. Conversation of Derveesh. Turkomaun. A Derveesh
tells the Story of Scanderbeg. Fakeers. Sultan Sanjaar. The
Khaleefa speaks of Ghengis Khan. Khaleefa's Son speaks ill
of the Assaff-ood-Dowla. Tribe of Salor best of the Turkomauns.
Ameer Sarog and Kaher Kouli lay a Plot to murder Dr. Wolff ;
the Khaleefa frustrates it. Jews aid the Khivites against Bo-
khara. Joseph of Talkhtoon. Turkomaun Tales of Sultan Sanjaar.
Turkomauns, in despite of Treaty, kill the Messenger of the Assaff-
ood-Dowla. The Khaleefa's Conversation the night of his depar-
ture with Dr. Wolff 144— 15G

CHAPTER XXII.

Tribe of Tekka. Route— Olugh Baba ; Sarakhs. Abbas Kouli Khan
ill-treated by the Turkomauns. The Turkomauns demand Robes
of Honour. Dr. Wolff is obliged to assume Madness to preserve
himself and Abbas Kouli Khan. Turkomauns demand Tribute
again. Taking of Sarakhs by Abbas Mirza in 1832. Khojam
Shokoor threatens to put the Caravan to Death. Arrival at Mostroon .
Nasarieh. Dil Assa Khan disgraced by the Assaff-ood-Dowla.
Gaskoon. Meshed. Dr. Wolff seized with Illness. Account of
Meshed; its Rulers. Letter from Colonel Shell, announcing a
Subscription to the Mission of three thousand Rupees from Captain
Eyre. Second Letter from same, announcing a Subscription for
the same Object from Cabul Relief Committee of ten thousand
Rupees. Dr. Wolff never received these Amounts. Letter from
Agra Bank, announcing further Subscription from the North-west
Provinces of India. Third Letter from Colonel Sheil. Assaff-ood-
Dowla takes Birjand. Earthquake at Kayen. Persian Agents not
trustworthy. Kind Reception at Meshed of Dr. Wolff by Hussein
Khan, Son of the Assaff-ood-Dowla. Hussein Khan wishes to
punish Dil Assa Khan. Dr. Wolff intercedes for him on account

xii CONTENTS.

of his Family. Dr. Wolff gets Abdullah bastinadoed and impri-
soned. Kindness of Mullah Mehdee to the English. Villany of a
German named Dieskau. Mirza Askeree, the Imaam Jumaa, calls
at Night on Dr. Wolff. Massacre of Allah-Daad. The Jew
Rahmeem. Dr. Wolff's Letter to the Jews of Meshed. 157— 176

CHAPTER XXIII.

Dissent among the Mussulmans. Sayed asserts Pilgrimages to be unne-
cessary. Imaum Resa killed by Haroun Rashid. Muhammed Ali
Serraf calls on Dr. Wolff; Dr. Wolff charges him with Neglect in
not delivering the Letters of Sir Moses Montefiore and the Sultan ;
Muhammed Ali Serraf shows a Letter from Colonel Sheil to justify
his Conduct. Date of the Execution of Colonel Stoddart and Cap-
tain Conolly. Argument for 1258 Hejirah; 1259 the right Date.
Dr. Wolff regrets that the Sufferings of the Officers should have
been so protracted, but cannot come, on reflection, to any other
Conclusion than 1259 Hejirah, 1843 A.D. Character of Colonel
Sheil. Evil of appointing Envoys that are not of the Established
Church. Singular Conduct of Colonel Sheil. Letter from the
Assaff-ood-Dowla. Christian Missions. Stations for them recom-
mended at Semnaan, Damghan, Nishapoor, Meshed, Hasrat-Sultan,
Tashkand, Shamay, Yarkand, Cashgar, Eele, Thibet, and Cash-
meer; not at present at Bokhara. Khokand, Cashmeer, Ladack,
and Lassa. Languages requisite : Arabic, Persian, Turkish, Chinese,
Hindustanee, Hebrew, and Kalmuck. Sciences and Arts. Conduct
required in a Missionary. The Character of a Missionary. Dialogue
between Dr. Wolff and a Sooffee. Ameer Beyk, the Daoodee.
Route — Askerea ; Shereef Abad ; Kadam-Gah ; Nishapore ; Sabz-
Awar. Curious Report circulated there, at the first Visit of Dr.
Wolff, that he was two hundred years old, and acquainted with all
the Sciences of the Earth. Visited the second time by Crowds who
conceived he had predicted the recent Earthquake. Route — Mas-
sanan ; Abbas Abad ; Miyandasht ; Miyamey. Dr. Cormick died at
Miyamey. Death of Abbas Mirza. Illness of Dr. Wolff. Con-
versation between Sabhan Ullah Khan and Dr. Wolff. Route —
Shah Rood; Deh-Mullah ; Damghan; DowlatAbad; Aghwan;
Semnan; Lasgird; Deh Namak; Pah-Deh; Kish-Lagh. Arrival at
Teheraun. Hospitable Reception by Colonel Sheil. Monsieur Le
Comte Sartiges 177—194

CONTENTS. xiii

CHAPTER XXIV.

Dr. Wolff preaches at the Embassy. Noble Conduct of Count Medem.
Colonel Sheil refuses to return the Letter of Lord Ellenborough.
Kindness of the Russian Embassy. Khosrow Khan. Dr. Wolff
writes to the Ameer. Reception by the Shah. Dr. Wolff thanks
His Majesty for his Life. His Life twice preserved by the Court
of Persia. Autograph of the Shah. Mullah Bahrain, the Gueber.
Colonel Sheil demands the Date of the Execution of Colonel Stod-
dart and Captain Conolly; Dr. Wolff gives 1258 Hejirah: Abbas
Kouli Khan thinks it was 1259. Dr. Wolff, on further reflection,
coincides with Abbas Kouli Khan. Persia could not under existing
circumstances take Bokhara. Mirza Abdul Wahab. Letter of Abbas
Kouli Khan to Lady Georgiana Wolff. Kindness of the Embassy
to Dr. Wolff. Armenian Church. Recourse had to the Russian
Embassy, and not to the British, by the Protestant Missionaries.
Count Medem visits Abbas Kouli Khan, and thanks him for his
Kindness to Dr. Wolff. Visit of Dr. Wolff to the Haje, the Prime
Minister of the Shah ; their Conversation. Haje Ibrahim demands
six thousand Tillahs; Dr. Wolff takes an Oath that he never
received this Sum ; Dr. Wolff pays him three thousand Tillahs,
and draws on Captain Grover for four hundred Pounds. Haje
Ibrahim claims three thousand Tillahs as due from Conolly; Dr.
Wolff protests against this Payment, and thinks Colonel Sheil
ought to have refused to pay Haje Ibrahim anything for either
Dr. Wolff or Captain Conolly. Inexplicable Conduct of Colonel
Sheil. Letter from the Queen to the King of Bokhara. Visit to
HajeBaba. 195-209

CHAPTER XXV.

Departure from Teheraun. Route — Kand; Sunghur-Abad ; Sepher-
Khoja. Meeting here with Assaad Ullah Beyk. Route — Cas-
ween ; Sultanieh ; Sanjoon ; Gul Teppa. Illness of Dr. Wolff.
Kind Reception of Dr. Wolff at Tabreez by Mr. Bonham ; his
Treatment by Dr. Casolani. Mr. Osroff and the Russian Legation.
Introduction of Dr. Wolff by Mr. Bonham to Prince Bahman Mirza.
The Prince presents Dr. Wolff with a valuable Emerald Ring.
Letter of Prince Bahman Mirza. Russian Inhabitants of Tabreez
consider it disgraceful to the British Government to permit the
Stoddart and Conolly Affair to rest in its present position. Extracts
showing the exact Position of these Diplomatic Agents. First,

xiv CONTENTS.

from Captain I. Conolly, Brother to the murdered Captain Conolly ;
Second, Extracts from the Correspondence of Colonel Stoddart.
Impolicy of Non-Interference. Holy Places visited by Persians.
Dispute between Turks and Persians on Frontier Question. Colonel
Taylor and Major Rawlinson. Disciples of John the Baptist; their
singular History; their Report of themselves that tney are De-
scendants of the Chaldeans and of the Brothers of Abraham. Triple
Name of God. Baptism of John in the Wilderness. Two kinds of
Priests ; one the Representative of the Baptist, the other of the Christ.
Their Book, the Sadra Raba ; reported Authors of it, Seth and
John the Baptist ; their Residences. Fruitless Attempts of Father
Agatangelos to convert the Mandaye or Disciples of John the Bap-
tist. Dr. Wolff, however, establishes a School which the Son of
even the Ganz Awra, or Representative of Jesus Christ, attends;
they affirm Boohyra to have been a Nestorian Monk ; also that they
emigrated from Egypt with the Jews, and separated from them on
the Institution of the Rite of Circumcision by Joshua; their Lan-
guage Chaldean. The Ganz Awra has his Right Hand cut off by
order of the Governor of Bosra; he maintained that numbers of
their Sect were resident in Morocco. Catholicity shown to be a
natural Principle from the Conduct of Sectarians. - 210 — 222

CHAPTER XXVI.

Two leading Sects amid Muhammedans, Sheeahs, and Sunnees. Ball by
Mr. Bonham ; Dancers all Gentlemen. Death of Mrs. Bonham.
Shamar Beyk ; Anecdote of him and General Neidhart. Chaldeans
in the Mountains of Kurdistaun, not of the Ten Tribes, Dr. Wolff
thinks, as commonly asserted. Nestorians or Chaldeans; their
Assertion that they did not become Followers of Nestorius, but
simply received him kindly among them; Episcopacy hereditary
among them; oppressed by the Kurds; Sir Stratford Canning
interferes in their behalf. Mai- Yohannan, Bishop of Oroomiah;
his Letter, written in English. Accurate character of Mr. Ains-
worth's Work on Asia Minor, &c. Armenians of Tabreez give
Dr. Wolff a Public Dinner. Diploma from Bahman Mirza to Dr.
Casolani. Daoud Khan. Attempt to abolish Ancient Forms by the
Protestant Missionaries injudicious. Edward Burgess; his unfor-
tunate Position ; Letter addressed by him to Dr. Wolff. Departure
of Dr. Wolff from Tabreez. Route — Mayoon; Deesa Kbaleel; Tasuj;
Sayd Hajee; Khoy. Dangerous travelling from tins point. Rob-
bery cf Messrs. Todd and Abbott; the Kurds compel Mr. Todd to

CONTENTS. f xv

swallow his Pomatum. Impute — Soraba; Karaine ; Leyba; Awajick.
Snow compels Dr. Wolff to go on Horseback. The Pasha of Erz-
room sends a Guard of Honour for Dr. Wolff. Letters from
Colonel Williams. 223—238

CHAPTER XXVII.

Route — Ghizl-Deesa; Utsh Kelesea. Nierses, the Katokhikos of the
Armenian Church. Efforts of Czar to unite Armenian and Russian
Churches. Route — Yuntsh Aloo ; Kara Klesea ; Mullah Suleiman ;
Seydekan. Dr. Wolff injured by a Fall from his Horse. Route —
Dehli Baba ; Komassur ; KopreKoy; Hassan Kaleh. Letters from
Colonel Williams and Mr. Brant. Letter of Colonel Williams to
Captain Grover. Arrival at Erzroom. Dreadful Sufferings of
Dr. Wolff. Kindness of Colonel Williams, Mr. Brant, and Mr. and
Mrs. Redhouse to Dr. Wolff. Letter of Dr. Casolani. Ambassador
from Bokhara to England arrives at Erzroom. Letter from Sir
Stratford Canning. Interview of Dr. Wolff], Mr. Brant, Colonel
Williams, and Colonel Fariant, with Kamil Pasha; Kamil Pasha's
Statement to them of his Interview with the Ambassador from
Bokhara to England. Departure from Erzroom. Route — Mey
Mansoor; Saaza; Massad; Bey boot; Jaajee Koy; Guinush Khane;
Artasa ; Yerkopri ; YeaeerOglu. Letter from Mr. Stevens. 239 — 255

CHAPTER XXVIII.

Arrival at Trebizond. Folly of Land Quarantine there. Ambassador
from Bokhara arrives. One of his old Friends the Makhrams calls
on Dr. Wolff ; Dr. Wolff feels reluctant to renew the Intimacy.
Visits received by Dr. Wolff when in Quarantine. Letter from
Colonel Farrant. Letter from Sir Stratford Canning. Bokhara
Ambassador gets Pratique one day before Dr. Wolff. Singular
Conduct of the Pasha of Trebizond. Letter from Mr. Brant. De-
parture for Constantinople. Sinope and Samsoon. Arrival at Con-
stantinople. Dr. Wolff preaches on board the Virago. Letter from
Sir Stratford Canning. Dr. Wolff waits upon Their Excellencies
Sir Stratford and Lady Canning. Letter from the Honourable Mr.
Wellesley. Kindness of the Legation. Letter from the Reverend
H. D. Leeves. Arrival of seven Franciscan Friars at Constan-
tinople, expelled from Russia for their refusal to take the Oath of
Allegiance to the Czar. Sympathy excited for them, rower of

xvi CONTENTS.

the Romish Church greatly curtailed by the Czar. Letter from Sir
Stratford Canning. Visit to Saint Sophia. The Missionaries call
on Dr. Wolff. Schaufner ; his extraordinary Acquirements in
Language. Kindness of Count Stunner. Sir Stratford Canning
induces Sultan to abolish Punishment of Death for Apostacy ; the
Declaration of the Porte. Introduction of Dr. Wolff to the Grand
Vizier, the Reis Effendi, the Shekeeb Effendi, and the Sheikh
Islam. Introduction to Greek Patriarchs. Liturgies of St. Chry-
sostom, St. Basil, and St. Gregory. The Patriarch visits Dr. Wolff.
Dr. Wolff preaches at the Legation, and in other Places. Kindness
of Lady Canning. Letter from the Honourable Mr. Wellesley.
Dr. Wolff embarks for England. Arrives at Smyrna. Meets there
Lord Clarence Paget and the Reverend H. D. Leeves. Quarantine
at Malta. Lord Lorton visits Dr. Wolff in Quarantine. The Bishop
of Gibraltar also sees him in Quarantine. Then sails for Gibraltar ;
on his arrival there receives Letters from the Governor, Sir Robert
Wilson, and the Reverend Dr. Burrow. Reaches Southampton on
on April 9th ; meets there Captain Grover, Lady Georgiana, and his
Son. Starts for London. Returns Thanks to Almighty God for his
Preservation in Trinity Church, Gray's Inn Road. Public Meeting
at Exeter Hall. Noble Character of Captain Grover. Letter from
the Rev. R. W. Stoddart, Vicar of Hundon. Conclusion. 256—277

APPENDIX.

I. The three Liturgies of St. Chrysostom, St. Basil, and St.
Gregory, with various Rites and Ceremonies of the Greek
Church, and separate Prayers - - - - 279

II. Narrative of Events which happened to Dr. Wolff at Bo-
khara, and on his Journey thence to Teheraun; by Abdul
Wahab -------- 293

III. Digest of English Policy relative to Asiatic States; by Cap-
tain Conolly 313

INDEX 337

NARRATIVE,

CHAPTER XII.

Colleges of Bokhara. Manner of Lecturing. Derveeshes fed by Ameer.
Jewish Synagogue at Bokhara. The King of Bokhara attached to
the Jewish Religion. Bokhara and Samarcand. Singular Report
of Dr. Wolff, that he understood seventy-two Languages, knew
seventy-two Religions, and had conversed with seventy-two Nations,
and that he had come from Sulmistaun to convert the Bokharese.
Makhram sent from the Ameer with a Question, How the Authen-
ticity of the Christian Religion is shown? Answer. Makhram sent
again, with a Request that the History of Muhammed, as related
by the Learned Men of Europe, should be written by Dr. Wolff,
and transmitted to the King. Dr. Wolff consents, on the condition
that he should not be forced to embrace Muhammedanism. Dr.
Wolff writes the Life of Muhammed. Life of Muhammed.

The day following the conversation with the Nayeb,
given in the previous Chapter (it was on a Monday),
the Makhram, Dil Assa Khan, and myself, mounted
our horses. Dil Assa Khan now began to ride near
me, the Makhram Kasem spoke in a friendly man-
ner, and pointed out to me the colleges of Bokhara,
which are splendid and beautiful buildings.

In these colleges the writings of the learned
Sunnees, as well as of the Sheahs, are read and dis-
cussed. Oratory, rhetoric, poetry, and logic, are stu-
died, besides the Koran ; disputations are carried on
Vol. II. B

a NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

in a scholastic manner ; Jelaal, Beydawee, are read.
They take as their guide the schools established in
Yemen. And, as I have witnessed it when in Yemen
in the year 1837, it is remarkable that the very mode
of opening their lectures is taken from the manner
adopted in Yemen. The teacher as well as disciple
lifts up his eyes first to heaven, the palms of his hands
are then turned to his face while the Fatkha is re-
cited, and then they stroke their beards ; and I must
observe that all judicial transactions are opened in
this manner, and after a present is given from a
superior to an inferior, it is also recited. The
same custom exists in Yemen, and only in Yemen,
by which it appears to me that Bokhara has taken
her customs and manners from the learned of Yemen.
They have a convent at Bokhara, dedicated to the
famous derveesh Mawlana Jelaal Uddeen, who cen-
turies ago went from Bokhara to Iconium. The
derveeshes at Bokhara are fed at the expense of
the Ameer, but he does not allow them any imperti-
nent acts, and frequently bastinadoes and puts them
to death.

The Synagogue of the Jews at Bokhara is a very
ancient building, but quite out of repair. The
Ameer gave his consent during my stay there to the
Jews, to repair the synagogue a little, but not to
extend the ground. They have here an ancient
MS. of Daniel, and in Chap. VIII. is the number two

MxriCL AOCUU* tru/uUKta.-

IMS ©BL»B CAM VE KOMLMSJL

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 3

thousand four hundred, instead of two thousand
three hundred.

Though the King of Bokhara is a friend to none,
yet he seems to have some predilection for the cere-
monies of the Jewish religion, and frequently goes
to the house of Rabbi Simha on the day of Taber-
nacles, and sees them celebrate that feast, and
partakes of their dinner. He has never seized on a
Jewish woman, as he has done on the wives of his
great ministers. He has even seized on the wife of
the excellent Grand Cazi, whose awful portrait we
subjoin. He is also anxious to learn from them
their views of the Messiah.

I shall now take this opportunity of saying a
few words on the cities of Bokhara and Samar-
cand.

Bokhara is situated in 39° 27' north latitude,
80° 19' east longitude. It is surrounded by deserts,
and watered by the little river Waf kan, which flows
between forests of fruit-trees and gardens. It has
eleven gates, and a circumference of fifteen English
miles ; three hundred and sixty mosques, twenty- two
caravanserays, many baths and bazars ; and the old
palace called Ark, built by Arslan Khan one thou-
sand years ago, and has about one hundred splendid
colleges. The houses have neither roofs nor win-
dows. The population amounts to one hundred and
eighty thousand, composed of Tatshicks, Nogays,

B 2

4 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

Affghauns, Mervee, Usbecks, and ten thousand Jews,
who are dyers and silk traders, and must wear a
small cap, and girdle around their waist, to be
distinguished from the Muhammedans. There are
several thousand slaves. There are about three hun-
dred merchants from Scinde, and many derveeshes.
Whole streets contain nothing but shops and maga-
zines for merchants from all the parts of Turkis-
taun, Cashgar, Hindustaun, and Russia. There are
great numbers of country houses, with gardens called
Jehaar-Baghs, all around Bokhara. Most delightful
villages are to be found eight miles around Bokhara.
A sickness prevails, chiefly in the city, called Rishta
— an immense worm comes out of the knees, and
makes people frequently lame for life ; it is ascribed
to the water. Ophthalmia is also prevalent. There
is only one Jewish physician of some skill, who
prides himself on knowing the sense of the word
" antimonial," and perpetually uses it, as Abdul
Samut Khan prides himself on knowing how to say,
41 Halt! front!"

Karkee, near the Amoo, is a strong town, with
one hundred and fifty houses, about one hundred
English miles from Bokhara.

In the cities of Oratepa, Karakol, and Jesagh,
the Usbeck chiefs called Serkerdeha have their
country houses, but they are now much oppressed
by Nasr Ullah Behadur, the present King of Bo-

OP DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 5

khara, who often takes possession of their wives
and sons. *****

The chief of the mullahs at Bokhara has the
title of Mullah Kelaun (grand mullah), a man of
excellent character, who deplores the murder of poor
Stoddart and Conolly.

Of Samarcand, the rival city, formerly the place
of residency of Timur, in the midst of the beautiful
valley Soghd, I have to remark that it was not long
since the seat of the King of Bokhara in the
time of winter, but as this town is frequently in a
state of mutiny, he seldom goes there. It was
known in the time of Alexander the Great by the
name of Marakanda Regia Sogdianorum ; and con-
tains the sepulchre of Timur. It is still the seat of
Oriental literature, and called " The Ornament of
the Face of the Earth." It has a wall of clay, and
forty thousand inhabitants ; a beautiful palace, and
many houses of marble ; many mosques and colleges.
It was formerly inhabited by Chinese, who manufac-
tured paper of silk, and it once had the name of
Bokhara-Tsheen, but received the present name
from the Conqueror Samar, after Christ 643.
Oologh Beyk erected there an observatory. There
are two thousand Jews there. Near it is a little
town called Sheeras, and it is probable that the
poet Hafiz alluded to Sheeras, near Samarcand, in
his lines :

6 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

l^^jLa^j ^ «X*,3-4**i -oi^S\J (j^A*-* 4^^

If that Turkish girl of Sheeras would give me her heart,
I would give for one mole of her cheek, Samarcand and
Bokhara. '

For there are no Turkish girls at Sheeras, in Persia.

A report was spread abroad, I found, throughout
the whole country of Bokhara, that Mullah Joseph
Wolff, the grand derveesh from England, was ac-
quainted with seventy-two languages, with seventy-
two religions, and had conversed with seventy-two
nations of the earth. That further I had been in Sul-
mistaun, i. e. the land of Darkness, Tartarus, and that
I had called on the Ameer to compel all the inhabit-
ants of Bokhara to embrace the religion of Jesus.

The Ameer sent one day to me the Makhram,
with the following question, of which I was obliged
to write down the answer : " How do the Christian
mullahs prove the truth of their religion ?"

I replied: I. That its Divine Founder, Jesus,
and his religion, were predicted, centuries before his
coming on earth, by the prophets of old.

II. By the miracles which Jesus performed, and
which miracles were admitted to have been per-
formed by Him by his own enemies.

III. By the life and conversation of Jesus.

IV. By the prophecies which He uttered and

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 7

which were fulfilled ; as, for instance, the destruc-
tion of Jerusalem was predicted by Him.

V. By the effect which Christianity produced.
Christianity teaches a man to set a proper value on
human blood. The Christians feel more horror,
consequently, than many other nations at the shed-
ding of human blood.

VI. Christianity fills the heart with compassion
and love, even towards others who are not our own
people. The Christians are the only people who have
established houses for the sick, where they receive
attendance and medicine without money, and also
houses for aged people and for widows and orphans.

On another day, when surrounded by many
Kalmucks, Merve, Usbecks, Jews, Kafer Seeah
Poosh, Hindus from Chicarpore, together with Dil
Assa Khan, His Majesty sent to me his Makhram,
with the following command, — that I should give him
the History of their Prophet Muhammed, as related
by the learned men among the English and other
European nations. This was rather a delicate point,
and I therefore asked His Majesty first, whether this
would lead to any attempt at forcing me to become
a Muhammedan. He sent me word, "Not in the
least." I wrote down as follows :

May God preserve Nasir Ullah Behadur, Ameer of
the Mussulmans, and Shaheen-Shah of Bokhara, the most
learned of the Ulema of the Bokhara Shereef.

Your Majesty's wisdom, anxious to know the customs

8 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

and manners and religious sentiments of other nations, imi-
tating in this respect your great ancestor Timur Kurikanee,
has graciously ordered me to write down the History of Mu-
hammed as related by Christian historians ; a task most diffi-
cult for me to perform, since, 1st, I am not so well versed in the
Persian language as to write it in an elegant style, as such a
subject deserves; 2nd, I wish to perform the task in such a
manner that it may be consistent with truth, and at the same
time not to wound the feelings of any one. But as, accord-
ing to the religion of Jesus, we must obey the commands of
Kings as far as their commands do not insult the commands
of Jesus ; and Your Majesty having promised that my under-
taking will not lead to a renunciation of my religion, I sub-
mit to Your Majesty's command by thus writing down the
History of Muhammed the son of Abd Ullah, the Prophet of
the Mussulmans.

The Empire of Pome was in the decline; the followers of
Jesus forgetting the precepts of the Anjeel (Gospel) — given
up to vice; Persia was enervated; the Government of the
Yoonaanean, residing in the place called at that time Byzan-
tium, and now Stambool, was given to bad morals; and Ara-
bistaun was divided by internal dissensions in the affairs of
this world as well as in religion. No wonder that God sent
his chastisement upon all these nations. A man, therefore,
was wanted to achieve the overthrow of Asia and part of
Africa. Such a man appeared in the person of Muhammed,
of the family of Hasham, of the tribe of Koreish.

The office of Superintendent (Shereef ) of the Kaaba at
Mecca, had been at first hereditary in the family of Ishmael;
afterwards, for some centuries, it was vested in the tribe of
Khoza; and in the year 464 after Jesus, the tribe of Koreish
deprived the Khozaites of this office by cunning, and after-
wards by open force. The office of Shereef of the Kaaba
was connected with certain advantages : he that occupied so
high a situation enjoyed not only great influence over the
city of Mecca, but also, as the holy house was an object of

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 9

veneration amongst all the tribes, over the whole of Arabia.
This high dignity, combined with the government of Mecca,
descended through four generations to Abd Almutaleb, son
of Hasham, grandfather to Muhammed, the prince and chief
of his tribe. Abd Almutaleb had rendered the most essen-
tial services to his country. To prevent general famine, the
father of Abd Almutaleb had in aforetime made provision by
permanent regulations for regular importations of corn, by
means of two numerous caravans, which departed and re-
turned regularly ; and Abd Almutaleb himself had liberated
his country by his valor and prudence from the yoke of the
Abyssinians. His liberality was not only extended to men,
but the birds of the air and the beasts of the field felt the
effect of his benevolence. On a certain day of every month
he fed all the poor of the city upon the roof of his house;
and also directed his servants to carry appropriate food to the
beasts on the hills. Abd Almutaleb was crowned also by the
plenitude of domestic blessings : he had thirteen hopeful sons
and six beautiful daughters. Abd Ullah was one of his
younger sons, and his favourite child. He was the jewel of
Arabian youths. But not less beautiful and modest was
Amina, Waheb's daughter, a Jewess of the noble family of
the Zarhites.

Abd Almutaleb married his favourite son to this beautiful
girl. But in the fourth year of her marriage, when she was
about to have a child, her husband, on a journey which he
had undertaken for commercial purposes, died at Yatreb, now
called Medinah. Abd Ullah had had no time to acquire
riches ; the whole property he left to his disconsolate widow
consisted of five camels and one Abyssinian slave-girl, Barek
by name. Two months after the death of her husband, on
the 12th day of Raba (April 10, 569 A.D.), in the afternoon,
Amina gave birth to a boy, who received from his grandfather
the name of Muhammed.

To celebrate the happy delivery of his daughter, Abd
Almutaleb prepared a splendid feast, to which he invited the

10 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

most distinguished of his family ; and in their presence he
gave to his grandson the name of Muhammed; and the
Arabian historians add, that the family of Koreish, asto-
nished at this, said to Abd Almutaleb, " Why dost thou call
the boy thus, as no other of thy tribe bears that name?"
Abd Almutaleb replied, " God shall glorify him in heaven
whom He has created on earth." We Christians, however,
say that the miraculous events which are said to have taken
place at his birth, according to Abulfeda, Elmakin, and Ma-
soodee, are evidently imitations of the Gospel narrative of the
birth of Christ ; for instance, that rays of light appeared in
heaven, which illuminated all the towns, villages, and markets
throughout Arabia and Syria; and even many Muhammedan
writers doubt these facts, even among the Sunnee.

Muhammed was consigned to the care of a nurse, Halima
by name; and when he was old enough he kept the flock of
his foster brothers and sisters. The boy grew up thriving,
lively in spirits, and strong in body, but was attacked by
epileptic fits, which rapidly increased to such a degree, that
Halima, in fear, returned the boy to the care of his mother.
But his mother died in his sixth year, on a journey to see her
uncle, and was buried at Al-Aba, between Medinah and
Mecca. Abd Almutaleb undertook the guardianship of Mu-
hammed; but in the boy's eighth year he also died, at the
age of a hundred and ten years ; and in his dying hour recom-
mended the orphan to the care of Abu Taleb, who became his
successor in the office of Shereef.

Abu Taleb was a wise man, highly respected at Mecca
and in the whole surrounding country; he was merchant,
warrior, and hunter. He undertook the education of
Muhammed, exercised him in military hardihood, and tried
to inspire him with courage, by taking him with him in
his expeditions for hunting the lion. Besides, he made
the boy acquainted with mercantile business, for which
purpose he took him on a journey to Syria. Among his
travelling companions were Abu-Bekr and Belal, who be-

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 11

came afterwards his most zealous partisans in the promul-
gation of his new religion. On that journey they came
near Bosra, in Syria, near to Damascus, where Abu Taleb
was acquainted with the monks of the Mandaye, who resided
there. The. monk Boohyra, of that convent, observed, "Mu-
hammed will become a great man," and Muhammed believed
himself the more to be a chosen vessel in the hand of Provi-
dence. He had frequently heard wise men, in the house of
his uncle, express the necessity of combining together the
conflicting religions of the Arabs into one pure religion, and
reducing all the tribes of the nation under the obedience of
one common creed. Besides, the historical traditions of the
Arabs had much analogy to those of the Hebrews, and coin-
cided with them in a great number of points ; for, as they
were of the Shemitic race, they deduced their origin from
Abraham and the other holy patriarchs of the primitive
world. Hence the traditions of a purer faith, and the simple
patriarchal worship of the Deity, appear never to have been
totally extinguished among the Arabs. In this manner a
spark was thrown into the glowing imagination of Muham-
med, which produced that mighty Arabian conflagration
whose flames were scattered to Turkistaun, Hindustaun, and
Affghanistaun by the sons of the Desert.

After their return to Mecca they resumed their usual
occupations, Muhammed, as before, spending his time in
commercial pursuits and military exploits ; and on account of
his tall figure and graceful deportment, he was considered
the finest and handsomest man in Arabia. When he was
twenty years of age, a feud broke out between the tribe of
Koreish and the two tribes of Kenan (the Rechabites) and
Hawazan. Under the order of Abu Taleb, Muhammed had
the command of a small body of horse ; and he distinguished
himself so much by his courage and intrepidity, as well as by
his judicious arrangements, that, by the unanimous voice of
his allies, as well as his opponents, the victory was ascribed

12 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

to the valour of Muhammed. Abu Taleb, and the house of
Hasham were much gratified with the military glory of
Muhammed.

Other circumstances also combined to raise the reputation
of Muhammed. Long before the time of Muhammed, the
Kaaba of Mecca had been constituted the great sanctuary of
Arabian worship. It contained the Black Stone, the object
of the religious devotion of the Arabs from a very ancient
period. We meet with a similar form of worship among the
Seikhs at Lahore, with regard to the stone called Salkram.
When the tribe of Koreish began to rebuild this temple they
were at a loss to know how the Black Stone should be fixed
in the wall, and what hands should touch it, when, unex-
pectedly, the lot fell to young Muhammed. He received
from this moment the name of Alameen, the trustworthy.
Khadijah, a rich widow, took him into her service. On
behalf of his mistress he returned to Syria, and renewed his
acquaintance with Boohyra at Bosra. Boohyra made him
acquainted with the contents of ancient books; and Solo-
mon the Jew spoke to him of the expectations of the Jewish
nation; and the hope, which the Jews still entertained, of
the future coming of a Deliverer and Prophet, operated
powerfully on the mind and imagination of Muhammed.

In the service of Khadijah, Muhammed undertook other
journeys to distant Arabia and the Persian Gulf; crossed
the Euphrates, and stood on the ruins of Babylon, and
visited Mesopotamia and Persia. He no longer travelled
as a mere commercial agent, but tried to enrich his mind and
intellect by various sciences ; wherever he came he tried to
make himself acquainted with the state of the country, with
the laws and character of the natives, and especially the
different religions ; and the never-ceasing divisions, wherever
he came, were the chief object of his attention. Burning
with a desire of knowledge, he associated with every one of
whom he believed he could learn something. Sometimes he

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 13

frequented the company of the disciples of John the Baptist,
of Zoroaster, Manichaeans, and other sects.

One day, as Khadijah was walking with her companions
on the terrace of her house, she saw Muhammed returning
from his journey. Khadijah sent one of her slave girls after
him, requesting him to become her husband; and she be-
stowed her hand on him when his whole property consisted
of five camels and an Ethiopian maid-servant. A splendid
feast was given at the wedding, to which all the inhabitants
of Mecca were invited. Twenty-four years Muhammed and
Khadijah lived together, contented and happy, blessed with
four sons and four daughters. None of the sons survived —
the daughters grew up; their names were Fatima, Zaima,
Eukaya, and Usu Khaltoon. He lived fifteen years, pursu-
ing his public functions with great conscientiousness, treating
all inferiors with great mildness, and was a most tender hus-
band; his moral character without reproach — his outward
conduct without blame.

He continued for some time his commercial journey ings,
when suddenly he lost at once all desire to travel, loved
retirement more and more, and at last retreated, during part
of every year, to a cave three hours distant from Mecca,
giving himself up to meditation; when suddenly he declared
himself— first of all to Khadijah and his children — as the long-
desired Rasool Ullah, Ambassador of God. It was in the
night time of the 23rd and 24th of Kamadan, in the night of
the divine decree, that Muhammed declared he had heard a
voice upon the mountain of Abuk Beis. When he descended
the mountain, — as the Arabian historians some centuries
after his death relate,— a heavenly light suddenly illumi-
nated the country around, and the Koran descended from
heaven. The bearer was, according to your Prophet's ac-
count, the angel Gabriel, who also had taught him to read;
and he said he had been hailed by the angel Gabriel as the
highest Prophet of God — which ice Christians do not believe.

14 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

The angel took the Koran back with him to heaven, but
gave Muhammed the assurance that he would, from time to
time, as the occasion arose, give him portions of it, divided
into Suras. Khadijah declared herself his convert; Waraka,
a Jew, and translator of the Bible, also became his convert ;
after him Ali; and Abd Ullah, who received the name of
Abu Bekr, the father of the virgin, as Muhammed married
his daughter.

Abu Bekr, thirty-four years of age, a man of great
weight, engaged other men of authority to embrace the
doctrines of your Prophet. However, Muhammed confined
himself first of all to his nearest relations and acquaintance,
to whom he preached, sometimes in eloquent prose, at others
in verses, the dogmas of his religion, and in three years he
had made about forty converts. At last he declared that
Gabriel had ordered him to preach openly and from the
house-top to the whole nation.

He invited the tribe of Hasham to a frugal dinner ; after
the repast was over he offered to them uninterrupted happi-
ness in this life, as well as in eternity, by embracing his
doctrine. The guests looked at him with much astonish-
ment, believing him to be mad. Muhammed threatened
them with eternal hell fire, which inflamed Abu Lahab, one
of his uncles, with such fury, that he cast a stone at him,
when Ali interfered, and declared that he would knock out
the teeth, force out the eyes, tear the entrails, and break the
bones of every one of those who dared to resist the Prophet.
Muhammed was so rejoiced at the emphatic confession of
Ali, that he embraced him as a brother; but when he went
so far as to nominate Ali, who at that time was fourteen, as
his Khaleefa, whom every one was to obey, all the guests
burst out into a fit of laughter. The bad success of this
first attempt was far from discouraging Muhammed ; under
the protection of Abu Taleb, who, though not a convert
himself, still favoured his nephew's enterprise, Muhammed

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 15

appeared before the people with the pretension of a Prophet,
and announced his doctrine by the name of Islam. The
more resistance he encountered, the more he pressed forward.

The Koreish attempted to crush him, but in vain. Mu-
hammed, however, too weak to resist openly, advised his
followers to fly from Mecca. Eighty-three of them, with
their wives and children, took shelter under the King of
Abyssinia; but Muhammed remained at Mecca under the
protection of his uncle. The principal men of the Koreish
went to Abu Taleb, and said: "Thy nephew reviles our
religion and sage ancestors, and, accusing them of ignorance
and infidelity, makes dissensions and rebellion." Muhammed
replied, "Even if they were to place the sun to my right
hand, and the moon to my left, they shall not bring me back
from the road I have taken." However, when the Koreish
made an attempt upon his life, he took an asylum in a forti-
fied house upon the Hill Zaffa, near Mecca, defended by
thirty-nine followers. He scarcely had remained there one
month, when his party gained the important acquisition of
two powerful men, — that of Hamsa, Muhammed's uncle, and
Omar. Under their protection, Muhammed left Zaffa, and,
with an armed escort, he approached the Kaaba, and boldly
preached in the open market-places of Mecca. The Koreish
challenged him to perforin a miracle. His answers were, on
one occasion, " That he was commissioned to be a preacher
only, and not a worker of miracles." At another time, he
replied, "That God, out of mercy, would not perform
miracles; for it would only redound to the greater con-
demnation of the infidels, who after all would not believe."

The Koreish assembled in the valley of Mecca, in the
plain of Muhazzab, in order to consult. The result of their
consultation was, not to lay down their arms until they
had exterminated the declared enemy of the state, with his
whole family, either by the sword, dagger, or poison. This
mighty conspiracy was reported to Abu Taleb; Muhammed

16 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

and the family of Hashani were sent for; they immediately
fortified themselves in a country house of Abu Taleb,
two miles distant from Mecca. When the Koreish saw
that their conspiracy was discovered, "they openly pro-
scribed and excommunicated Muhammed and his whole
family and followers. They marched against him; but
they were not able to succeed; he was already too pow-
erful. They attempted to starve him by cutting off the
wells and provisions; but he had already too many friends.
In his fortress he pronounced his curse against Abu Lahab.
They fought for three years with mutual success and defeat;
but, during the four holy months, when the Arabs were
obliged to observe a strict armistice, and in which it was not
allowed to employ either sword or lance, Muhammed went
forth from his fortress, and proclaimed himself to the people,
and to the pilgrims journeying towards Mecca, as the Am-
bassador of God. The persecutions he underwent by his
opponents fired him with greater zeal: the natural effect of
persecutions.

He spoke with amazing eloquence, — every sentence
which he uttered fell upon the heads of his enemies like
a clap of thunder, — great numbers were added to his party,
among them the most distinguished citizens of Medinah. In
this emergency of the state, when the downfall and the
total overthrow of the constitution of Mecca was to be
be apprehended, the Arabs chose Habeeb, one of their mighty
princes, who had twenty thousand cavalry under his com-
mand, as arbiter between them and the Hashamites. Habeeb
was one hundred years of age, a Jew in his youth, then a
Sabean, and after a Christian, but celebrated in Yemen for
his love of justice and wisdom. He undertook willingly the
office of arbiter, and encamped with three thousand horse in
the plain of Muhazzeb. Muhammed appeared before the
judgment seat of Habeeb, but here Muhammed knew how
to state his case with such presence of mind, that he was

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 17

honourably acquitted by Habeeb, and even taken under
his powerful protection. Habeeb observed to those
around him, "Nothing will be able to stem this mighty
torrent: he will succeed, and idolatry shall be crushed!"
Tranquillity was restored thus at Mecca, but only for a
short time.

Muhammed made use of the short period of armistice to
get the sentence of excommunication recalled, which had
been pronounced by the Koreish against the Hashamites,
and which excommunication had been deposited in the Kaaba.
He sent word to the family of Koreish, that God had
revealed to him that a worm had been sent by him into
the Kaaba, in order to gnaw through the document of ex-
communication, deposited in the Ark, except that spot where
the name of God ivas written. The family of Koreish exam-
ined the document; and, on finding this to be the case, they
annulled it altogether.

But, in the tenth year of his mission, his uncle Abu
Taleb and his wife Khadijah died; and the greatest enemy
of his family, Abu Suffian, of the tribe of Ummia, succeeded
to Abu Taleb in the government of Mecca; many of his
followers, from fear, left Muhammed; so that he undertook,
in the company of his faithful disciple Sayed, a journey to
Tayef, thirty miles eastward from Mecca, where he received
but a cold reception, and was banished from the city as a
madman.

Resistance and obstacles incited the more the audacity and
courage of Muhammed. He returned again to Mecca, and,
without taking the least notice of Abu Suffian's threats, he
preached from the housetops to the swarm of pilgrims, and
made hosts of proselytes, and gained over to his doctrine six
of the most respectable citizens of Medinah, of the noble
tribe of Khasredj and Aus, allied with the Jewish tribe of
Karaites and Nadir, who had the greatest influence in
Medina and throughout the Arabian republic. These six
Vol. II. C

18 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

citizens swore allegiance to Muhammed, and bound them-
selves by an oath never to forsake him, and to bear witness
of his divine message to the family of Aus, and before all the
rest of the tribes. The enthusiasm of these six citizens laid
the first foundation of the worldly grandeur of Muhammed ;
and his supremacy gave to the history of the world a new
direction.

Till this period, Gabriel only was the person who initiated
him as a prophet; but in the twelfth year of his mission he
obtained a higher call. On the night of the 20th of the
month of Rajab, while Muhammed slept in the valley
between Saffa and Merva, suddenly he was awaked by a
voice saying, "Sleeper, awake." When he opened his eyes,
he saw Gabriel standing before him in his true figure,
enwrapped in rays of light, having round his forehead a
royal tiara, upon which was written, in strokes of fire, the
words:

There is God, and nothing but God, and Muhammed the Prophet
of God.

The angel announced to him that the Highest had called
his Prophet to converse with Him. A horse, saddled and
bridled, Al Barak, i. e. the lightning horse, stood near the
angel, which had the head of a horse, but with the face of a
man, two wings like an eagle, his colour gray, mixed with
white, but resplendent like the stars when illuminated with
the light of the sun. The horse was unruly, and when
Gabriel reminded him that he stood before Muhammed the
Prophet, it availed nothing until Muhammed himself pro-
mised that a good stable in Paradise should be provided for
his comfort ; then he was calm and resigned. Gabriel took
hold of the bridle, and with the swiftness of thought they
arrived at Jerusalem, where, at the gate of the Temple, a
multitude of patriarchs and prophets were standing, desiring
his intercession and blessing, and wishing him a happy
journey. Barak was tied to a rock, and Muhammed ascended

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 19

with Gabriel on a ladder up toward heaven. For a few
moments they stood before the gates of the heavenly realm.
The porter, on being informed that Gabriel and Muhammed
stood without, immediately opened the gate; when an old
man came to meet the Prophet, who bowed with deep humi-
lity, and recommended himself to the prayers of Muhammed.
This old man was no other than Adam, the father of the
human race.

The journey extended to the second, third, fourth, fifth,
and seventh heaven. The first was of silver, set with jewels;
the second of gold; the third of transparent diamonds;
another vaulted entirely with the odour of roses and other
flowers ; but the seventh consisted of nothing but splendour
and divine light. He conversed with Abraham in the seventh
heaven, and there he observed two angels continually occu-
pied in writing the names of some men and erasing those of
others.

In the seventh heaven the Angel Gabriel left him, and he
alone continued his progress to the throne of God. When he
approached his footstool, he read the inscription, w God and
nothing but God." The Almighty laid his hands upon Mu-
hammed's breast and shoulders. God revealed to his Pro-
phet deep mysteries, and granted him many prerogatives—
the knowledge of languages, and the privilege of retaining for
his own private use the spoils taken in battle ; also an order
from God to make his followers to pray fifty times a day,
which, however, at his instant intercession, was reduced to
five times.

He returned, accompanied by Gabriel, to Jerusalem,
where he mounted his horse Al Barak, and was in the twink-
ling of an eye again in the plain between Saffa and Merva,
one mile from Mecca. The whole journey, which, according
to Arab calculations, required eleven thousand years to per-
form, was accomplished by him in less than an hour. Gabriel
then took leave of him, and Al Barak, the horse, reminded

C 2

20 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

Muhammed most humbly of his promise to provide a com-
fortable stable for him in Paradise.

But his friends begged him not to speak openly of his
journey to heaven, as it would only expose him to ridicule.
However, Muhammed openly proclaimed it, and Abu Bekr
confirmed it ; but the family of Koreish declared that he
must be either mad or an impostor; but he was more success-
ful at Medinah, where the story was not only believed, but
embellished by his followers. With the assistance of his dis-
ciple Mozab, the greater part of Medinah was converted to
him. Seventy-two men and women were sent to Mecca from
Medinah to Muhammed to pay him homage, and they pro-
mised him, after a secret conversation with him, to assist him
in war, defensive and offensive. He nominated immediately
twelve chiefs, whom he endowed with temporal and ecclesias-
tical power. Before they returned, the Ambassador asked
Muhammed, " After thy native place shall have acknowledged
thy virtues and thy merits, wilt thou forsake us ?" He an-
swered with a smile, "All is now common among us ; your
blood is my blood; your happiness is my happiness; your mis-
fortune my misfortune. The bonds of religion have united
us together for ever; yea, the bonds of honour and general
interest. I am your friend, and for ever the enemy of your
enemies." They replied, "If we should fall in thy service,
what would be our reward?" He replied, " Paradise." They
said, "Muhammed, give us thy hand." He gave his hand as
a pledge, and the union was made for ever ; and from that
time Islam was the ruling and universal religion of the inha-
bitants of Medinah.

This union produced general consternation among the
tribe of Koreish. They determined to murder Muhammed,
whose followers were scattered abroad; but he was saved by
his nephew Ali, and Muhammed took shelter with Abu
Bekr. They both escaped. Abu Bekr was oppressed with
gloomy thoughts. " Why art thou cast down ?" Muhammed

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 21

asked him; "dost tliou not know that we are not alone?"
« Who is with us?" asked Abu Bekr. « Ullah" (God), Mu-
hammed answered.

They hid themselves in a cave in the mountains of Tur.
The tribe of Koreish came near the cave, but did not observe
them. After three days they left the cave. Abu Bekr
procured two camels and a guide, by name Abd Ullah, an
idolater, and they commenced their journey to Medinah.
But suddenly they were overtaken by Sorak, one of the
Koreish cavalry, who ran upon them with his lance; but his
horse took fright, which gave Muhammed and Abu Bekr
time to escape, and they arrived safely at Medinah.

This flight, called the Hejra, 622 A.C., was the beginning
of a new era. After a fatiguing journey of twelve days along
the sea shore, they at last arrived at Medinah on a Friday,
when Muhammed made his solemn and pompous entrance,
met by five hundred citizens, and all the fugitives who had
preceded him. Muhammed sat on a she camel, and an um-
brella of palm leaves sheltered him from the sun. Abu Bekr
rode by his side, and Boreida before him, with a flag in his
hand. Thousands saluted the Prophet in the street, and from
the windows of the houses. He was received with shouts of
jubilee and joy. Thousands desired him to be their guest,
but Abu Tayeb had the honour of receiving the Prophet
under his roof.

A few days after, he laid the foundation of a mosque and
a house for himself and family. Both buildings were com-
pleted in less than eleven months, for Paradise was the
reward promised to the builders. He next began to exercise
the functions of High Priest and King. He instituted public
prayers ; he preached daily under a palm-tree ; appointed the
times of fasts and ablutions. Magi, idolaters, Persians, and
Jews came daily to Medinah to pay homage to the Prophet,
and he made any reform he pleased in the state. At last he
held a public levee, nominated civil and military officers, and

22 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

commanded every Mussulman to take the sword, or pay a
contribution for the expense of the war, at the first summons
of the Apostle; and every war declared by Muhammed was
styled the holy war. He had a great seal, with the words
engraved on it, " Muhammed the Prophet of God."

The battle of Bedr was fought in the year 623. Abu
Suffian marched against Muhammed with seventy-five thou-
sand men; the Prophet had only fifteen thousand to oppose
to him. Already he was defeated ; shouts of triumph were
heard from the camp of the enemy, when Muhammed him-
self came forward with a detachment of troops from an
ambush, and exclaimed, with a voice of thunder, "Angel
Gabriel ! come down with eleven thousand angels !" Arrows
were flying and darts hurled at the same moment; his
already-defeated army, imagining themselves to be protected
by invisible hosts of celestial warriors, took fresh courage,
and Abu Suffian's army, struck with a panic, took flight, and
Muhammed gained the victory.

Immediately after the battle of Bedr, that of Ohod was
fought. Khaleed, the son of TValeed, marched against
Muhammed. The idol of Lat and Uthal, the protector of
Khaleed's army, was placed at a little distance, guarded by
only a few men. Muhammed was again giving way, when
he rode up to Ali, and commanded him to hasten with a
detachment of cavalry to the idol, and break it to pieces.
Ali, with the swiftness of lightning, obeyed his command.
Khaleed's army, perceiving their idol destroyed, took to
flight, and Muhammed again was victorious.

At length, in the year 629, the daughter of a Rechabite,
— like another Jael, mentioned in the history of the Jews, —
undertook to deliver Arabia from Muhammed; she adminis-
tered poison to Muhammed, which produced inflammation in
the brain. " None has ever suffered such pains as I do," he
observed to Omar. * Go thou, and perform the prayer in
the mosque, instead of me." Already Omar had ascended

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 23

the pulpit, when Muhammed raised himself upon his couch,
and said to his attendants, " Pour cold water over me."
They obeyed; he then rose from his bed, and said, "As long
as I shall have breath in me, I shall perform public prayer
myself." He went to the mosque, and called to Omar to
stop. He performed the prayers with a loud voice — went
home— laid down on his bed — uttered three dreadful shrieks :
his last words were, "Kasool Ullah" (Ambassador of God )
and expired.

24 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

CHAPTER XIII.

Sensation produced by the Life of Muhammed ; Copies of it circulated
through Balkh, Khoollom, Mazaur, and Cabal; Remarks of the
Sheikh Islam on it. Yar Muhammed Khan advises the King to
behead Dr. Wolff. Ak Muhammed Beyk appointed Ambassador
from Bokhara to England. Mischief occasioned by the Servants of
Colonel Stoddart. Colonel Stoddart ends his Diplomatic Relations
with Yar Muhammed Khan by kicking him down stairs. Ques-
tions by the Makhrams. King's Remark on Dr. Wolff's Personal
Appearance. The People call Dr. Wolff Khoob Ademee, " The Good
Man." The King gives him three Names. High reputation of Sir
Moses Montefiore among the Jews of Bokhara. Further Questions
put by the Makhrams by order of the Ameer to Dr. Wolff; Dr.
Wolff's Reply to each. The Dastar Khanjee a Disgrace to Man-
Ameer. Dr. Wolff demands the Bones of Stoddart and Conolly.
hood. Peculiar Character of the Post at Bokhara. The Ameer reads
all the Letters of his Subjects. Interview of Dr. Wolff with the
The King threatens to send Dr. Wolff's Bones to England. Dr.
Wolff hears of the Villany of Abdul Samut Khan from various
Persons. Refused permission to depart by reason of the Detention
of the Bokhara Ambassador in Persia. Writes to Colonel Sheil.
Russian Slaves refused Liberation. Conversation with the Officers
of the Nayeb. Hassan Shirazi.

The sensation excited by my paper on Muhammed,
as soon as copied, and delivered to His Majesty
the King, was immense. He sent for the Sheikh
Islam, for the Kasi Kelaun, and all the rest of the
mullahs. The Sheikh Islam observed, "This life
must be kept among the library in the Great Mosque,
and it is remarkable with what prudence Joseph
Wolff has contrived to state his sentiments without
giving offence, and at the same time delivers with

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 25

sincerity the sentiments of wise Christians with re-
gard to our Prophet." Copies were ordered by His
Majesty to be taken and sent to Balkh, Khoollom, and
Mazaur; and Mullah Buddr-Deen, the great mer-
chant from Affghanistaun, sent copies to Cabul ; and
Khodsha Sahib, a merchant from Cashmeer, sent to
his friends at Cashmeer; and the Governor of Samar-
cand sent copies to the mullahs of Samarcand and
Orateppa. And the Sheikh Islam observed to His
Majesty, "A great calamity will befal the city, if
Joseph Wolff is killed at Bokhara, and not sent back
to his country with distinction." His Majesty the
King replied, " I have given myself a terrible wound
by having killed Stoddart and Conolly."

May 5th. I received permission to depart, on
the 9th of this month, from the King. At this
period I laboured under the most pleasing delusion
as to the real character of the Nayeb, and in the
innocency of my heart wrote to England to that
effect. I continued to labour under this delusion for
some time. The 9th arrived, but with it no permis-
sion to depart. The King, however, and the Nayeb
continued to treat me kindly. I soon, however,
found that I was surrounded by a mass of treachery
nearly unparalleled. The first glimpses broke in on
me from a discovery that I made as to Yar Muham-
med Khan, of Heraut. This villain promised to
recommend me to the Ameer of Bokhara, and he

26 NARRATIVE OP THE MISSION

kept his word. He did so— for decapitation. The
Ameer, however, did not attend to him, being pre-
possessed against him, fortunately for me, otherwise
I might not now live to tell the tale.

Wednesday, the 14th, was again fixed for my
departure with Ak Muhammed Beyk, a great Turko-
maun chief, who was to accompany me with pre-
sents from the Ameer for our Queen, and a letter.
Apparently great outward kindness was shown to
me, for when I wanted to be bled, the King sent
word that I ought not to do so previous to a journey.
I called on the King in my Bokhara dress, and His
Majesty laughed heartily at my appearance. He is
wholly uneducated, but not without talent. I re-
mained in the house of Abdul Samut Khan. People
began at last to assume sufficient courage to call on
me. They all expressed their astonishment that I
should be better treated than the Russian Ambas-
sador, and they began now to bow to me in the
street. One day I fell from my horse in the street,
but was not hurt, which they ascribed to my carry-
ing the Bible always about with me. Though I did
not feel the effects then, this fall afterward produced
a rupture, which greatly inconvenienced me, since I
had to ride twelve hundred miles on horseback
without a bandage.

On inquiry, I found in all directions that Colonel
Stoddart's servants did him immense injury. All the

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 27

accusations against my poor friend Conolly were of
the idlest description. Colonel Stoddart was cer-
tainly a most rash and inconsiderate man. The
story of drawing his sword on the Makhram that
was to present him to the King, was in everybody's
month, as a gross violation of the etiqnette of the
Court.

I conversed one day with several people of
Heraut. They spoke highly of English officers, and
related the following story of Colonel Stoddart:
" He was visited on one occasion by Yar Muhammed
Khan, who was, as the Herant people expressed
themselves, the greatest Haram-Zadeh in existence.
Colonel Stoddart spoke to him about the affairs of
Kamran Shah, and after a few remarks by him on
the villany of Yar Muhammed Khan, the discussion
became so warm, that Colonel Stoddart rose and
said, c With you I shall soon have done,' and kicked
him down stairs." This was diplomacy with a
vengeance.

Every day of my residence here brought with it
some question to be solved for the King's satisfaction.
On even the second day of my arrival, the King sent
one of his Makhrams to ask two questions. 1st.
Whether I had the power to raise the dead ? 2nd.
Did I know when the day of resurrection would
take place ? My answers were written down.

One day the King remarked to the Nay eb, that I

28 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

was the most singular being lie had ever seen. I
was not like any other European. I was not like an
Englishman, or a Jew, or a Russian, in my outward
appearance and conduct.

I pass here by the name of the Khoob Ademee, the
good man, among the people. In the very market-
place, they say, " The Englishman is come, and he
asked Hazrat (His Majesty), Why have you killed
my countrymen? After him more of his people will
come with force and power, and our Nayeb is occu-
pied with the Englishman for some great design and
purpose.5'

About this time, May the 14th, 1844, the King
learnt the detention of his own Ambassador at Me-
shed on my account, and therefore determined to
detain me. I continued, however, to ride about with-
out strict surveillance on to the 22nd. The King-
wrote letters to the Sultan and Shah. Ambassadors
are sharper looked after than myself, for they are
not permitted to get clear of a very strict surveil-
lance. His Majesty looked upon Dil Assa Khan as
a contemptible dog, he told me, for not having
fulfilled his duty, to the Assaff-ood-Dowla. He
gave me three epithets. 1st. Joseph Wolff the Ori-
ginal. 2nd. Joseph Wolff the Star vnth the Tail.
3rd. Joseph Wolf the Timid One.

The Jews of Bokhara have taken courage, and
called on me. The name of Sir Moses Monte-

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 29

fiore, and the rumour of his exertions for the
benefit of the Jewish nation, have reached their
ears and those of their brethren in Samarcand,
Balkh, Khokand, and Heraut. And Sir Moses
Montefiore will be surprised to learn that his exer-
tions in behalf of the Jews have drawn the atten-
tion of the Jews in those distant regions to the
doctrines of Christianity; for many Jews, when at
Bokhara, observed to me that the religion of the
Gentiles in England must absolutely be better than
that of Muhammed, as the proceedings of Sir Moses
Montefiore, in behalf of the Jews, are not only tole-
rated, but also countenanced, supported, recom-
mended, and eulogized. And about Rothschild they
say that, in a country where one can so openly make
a display of one's property, the religion of that nation
must be better.

The reason why His Majesty called me Joseph
Wolff the Timid One, I discovered to be from the
cause that Ameer Asian told him that I was ill from
the apprehension of losing my head. He supposed
this to be the case, from a sudden illness with which
I was seized in the market-place, His Makhram
continued to come down daily with questions such as
these :

The mode of travelling in Persia, Turkey, and
England? To this I replied, giving an ordinary
explanation; but His Majesty could not understand

SO NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

why we had no camels in England, and I had to
write an immense time before he comprehended onr
railroad travelling-.

Whether the Queen has a husband ? I answered
this in the affirmative, but told him that the govern-
ment was in the hands of the Queen. He then
exclaimed, "What kind of husband is he that is
under the government of his wife ?"

Why a woman is Queen, and not the husband ?
I pointed out that the succession ran in the eldest
branch, male or female, and illustrated the position
by James of Scotland.

The Ameer wished another day to have the
names of the four grand Viziers, and twelve little
Viziers of England, and the forty-two Elders. I
gave to His Majesty a list of the names of the present
Ministry, when the Makhram returned in a fury, and
said that His Majesty had found me out to be a liar,
for the four grand Viziers, according to Colonel
Stoddart's account, were : Laard Maleburne, Laard
Jaan Rawsall, Laard Malegraave, Seere Jaane
Habehaase. I was brought in to the King, and then
had to give a complete idea of the Constitution of
England, which, though His Majesty could not
understand it fully, yet I convinced him that my list
might be true also, especially as I was able to tell
him the names of the Whig Administration.

At the same time His Majesty asked me whether

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 31

witches were to be found in England. To which I
replied, that witchcraft was prohibited to the Chris-
tians, and according to the old law of England, was
punished with death ; that this arose from the fact
that witchcraft required to complete its rites, shed-
ding of blood, and other unlawful acts, and was
consequently for that, independent of any other
question of its effects, punished with death, under
Jewish and Christian ordinances. That witchcraft
does not now exist, and that scarcely any one in
England believes in the existence of it at all. I was
the more anxious to say this, lest from the circum-
stance of their entertaining the notion of my being
a wizard, I might suffer those very serious conse-
quences that my predecessors in the black art had
from time to time experienced. It will further be
seen, in the progress of this Narrative, that it was
reported that Abdul Samut Khan and I practised
witchcraft at our meetings, when in truth that
mighty alchymist was only bent on transmuting me
into as much solid gold as possible by the dint of
his philosopher's stone, cruelty, incarceration, and
threats of death.

On another occasion I was asked, How many
Ambassadors Her Majesty had, and how they were
treated ? I gave a list of Ambassadors, and stated
that they were not guarded and watched, as was the
practice at Bokhara, but enjoyed full liberty and
high distinctions and privileges.

32 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

The King then asked, Whether they would kill
his Ambassador at London ? I replied, if any Eng-
lishman did so, he would immediately be put to
death, by the laws of the land ; and to illustrate it I
told him of the good reception of Dost Muhammed
Khan in India.

Why do the English people like old coins ? was
then demanded. I explained that their value
in the eyes of Englishmen arose from the circum-
stance that coins were looked upon as the very back-
bone on which the frame of history is supported.
That without them we could not ascertain the dura-
tion of the world, dynasties of kings, and national
events. That they were the great guides of the his-
torian in determining his aeras, and formed a metallic
history of the earth, and that statues and ancient
monuments were used as similar auxiliaries.

Who Ghengis Khan was ? After the usual par-
ticulars of this well-known life, I added that the
Jews believed that he was one of their nation.

Who Dareius was ? I then detailed the history
of this monarch, whom they call Takianus.

How the English govern India ? After general
details, I pointed out the toleration of the British
Government in India, allowing all persons to follow
their own religion, and making no difference in the
exercise of law between Englishman, Muhammedan,
and Hindoo ; and that if an Englishman were to

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 33

insult a Muhammedan or Hindoo, relative to reli-
gion or any other matter, he would be severely
punished.

The names of the richest Jews in England?
Rothchild, Goldsmith, Sir M. Montefiore, and Co-
hen.

Whether the Queen has the power to kill any
one she pleases ? No ; but she can pardon whom
she pleases ; and persons who have even attempted
the life of the Queen have not suffered, but been
pardoned. I explained that the Queen was com-
pelled to submit her rights to the trial by jury, as
well as the Lords or Commoners. On which one of
the Makhrams observed, "What kind of a Sove-
reign is this, that cannot take away any life that
she pleases ?"

How many farsakhs an hour a steam ship goes ?
I said three and four farsakhs (about sixteen miles
an hour.)

The Bokhara Ambassador, alluded to in one of
the above questions, was a man of striking appear-
ance. He was a Tatshick, and his brother one of
the first merchants in the place.

The instances of villany which I daily detected
of Dil Assa Khan were perfectly startling. I found
out that he had laid a plot to sell me to the Haza-
rah. Next to the Dastar Khanjee I considered him
at this time one of the most wicked men I had ever
Vol. II. D

34 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

seen. This man, who is placed over the King's
kitchen, and at the same time has also the custom-
house under him, and occupies in fact the position of
King's Vizier, is only twenty years of age, and has
been raised to this office for demerits unmentionable
in any journal or narrative. He is one of the most
voluptuous and effeminate villains imaginable. I
have inserted his portrait, and I think it gives fully
the base character of the man. When he is older it
is generally hoped by the inhabitants, and confidently
expected by them, that the King will decapitate him
and seize on his enormous wealth. He treated
Colonel Stoddart and Captain Conolly with peculiar
severity. The less said of this disgrace to manhood
the better.

In order to exemplify in the best manner the
tyranny of the Ameer of Bokhara, I need only men-
tion the following facts : That every letter sent from
Bokhara, and every letter arriving for their mer-
chants and dignitaries, and every private note which
the wife writes to her husband, or the husband to the
wife, must first be opened and perused by the King
of Bokhara ; so that actually it is a matter of the
utmost difficulty to forward letters to Bokhara.
This circumstance may plead an excuse for Colonel
Sheil ordering Muhammed Ali Serraf not to for-
ward the letters from Sir Moses Montefiore by an
express Gholam. For even if the letters arrive the

Muz/I Ahdul Wahrib drtt

THE ©ASTim T&MJOIE3B..

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 35

people are afraid to receive them. The Khaleefa of
Mowr alone is able to forward letters to Bokhara
with safety, but of this circumstance Colonel Sheil
was not aware, and Muhammed Ali Serraf had no
inclination to make use of the Khaleefa.

Another act of tyranny committed by the Ameer
is that boys are employed as newswriters, whose
duty it is to report to him every word which other
boys talk in the street ; even brother to brother at
home, and servants in families, are also obliged to
write down for the King * any conversation they
hear between husband and wife, even in bed ; and
the people set over me were ordered to report to
him what I might happen to speak in a dream.
Such written reports are called Areeza, i. e. peti-
tions to the King. But whilst His Majesty has
established such a complete system of espionage,
a similar one is established over him, though in
secret, by several of the great officers of the State.
Abdul Samut Khan boasted to me, and I heard
the truth of his statement confirmed by others,
that he (Abdul Samut Khan) knew every* sentence
and every half sentence the Ameer uttered, and all
that is spoken to him. Abdul Samut Khan was
exactly informed of every word that I uttered on
a certain Friday that I went to the Salaam (levee)
of the King, viz., that I had requested His Majesty
to give me the bones of Stoddart and Conolly, and

D 2

36 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

that His Majesty's answer was, " I shall send your
bones." The Ameer is evidently afraid of Abdul
Samut Khan, for as often as Abdul Samut Khan
exercises his artillery by ordering* cannons to be fired,
the Ameer sends one of his Makhrams to the Nayeb,
who lives outside the town, to inquire for what pur-
pose the cannons are fired, and I witnessed that in a
single day three or four times Makhrams came to
Abdul Samut Khan with the same question.

It may be asked, " Does the Ameer fear Eng-
land ?" 1 say exceedingly : so much so that when I
arrived there, for three days he was sitting with his
head leaning upon his hands, in deep thought ; and
he observed to the Grand Cazi, " How extraordi-
nary ! I have two hundred thousand Persian slaves
here ; nobody cares for them ; and on account of two
Englishmen, a person comes from England, and
single-handed demands their release."

There are two Armenians from Astrachan at
Bokhara, the name of the one is Barhur-Dar, and
the other Hoannes, who were forbidden by the Ameer
to approach me. They are suspected by the inha-
bitants to be Akbar-Nuwees (report writers), some
say to the English Government, and others to the
Russian. I however found a real friend to the
British Government in a Khoja Sahib, a merchant
from Cashmeer, who chiefly opened my eyes about
the infamous Nayeb, Abdul Samut Khan, and who

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 37

told me, u That rascal has never told you how ill he
treated Conolly, poor Conolly, and gave him nothing
to eat, after he had stopped with him for a while,
for Conolly was too shrewd to be cheated by him."

With respect to this person (Abdul Samut Khan),
I omitted to mention that after the long conversation
I had with him on the subject of Stoddart and
Conolly, given above, that he made me a present of
a Bokhara robe, and also one to Dil Assa Khan. On
our return to my lodgings in the Toorah Khane from
that interview, the good old Yoos-Bashi, when he
saw me, wept for joy, as when one sees another
returning from a dangerous journey. Also the
Turkomauns, Ameer Sarog and Kaher Kouli, who
were formerly distant in their demeanour, again took
courage to salute me. After three days I called
again on the Nayeb. He informed me that he had
already paid thirty tillahs for five camels to Morteza
preparatory to my departure, and twenty tillahs
I should have to pay him at Meshed. I said, " Why
so ? I only want two camels, which amounts to six
tillahs (about three pounds), but he replied that
he should have to give me so many effects of
Colonel Stoddart and Captain Conolly, which he
had recovered at great personal cost from others,
that I should not know what to do with them. He
showed to me three mantles (khelats) from Conolly,
when a curious thing happened. A soldier (Sirbas)

38 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

exclaimed, on passing, as he caught a sight of the
Khelat, " I know that ; we took it from the palace of
Muhammed Ali, King of Khokand." The Nayeb
exclaimed, " Pedret Sukhte," " May thy father be
burned, but do you know they belonged to Conolly
Saib ?" and I observed him giving the man a look of
peculiar expression. The soldier slowly walked off,
but when he saw me again, he told me, " The Nayeb
lies. We took it from the palace of the King of
Khokand. You will never come out of this place
again. The Nayeb, Pedre Sukhte Nayeb, will do
with you as he did with Stoddart and Conolly. He
killed them, and he will kill you." Whilst we were
talking, I heard the shrieks and howlings of people.
I asked, " What is that ?" He said, " This is the pri-
son kept by the Nayeb for those whom he suspects,
and whom he suffers to starve from hunger. The
Nayeb came, and our conversation was interrupted.

I asked the Nayeb, " Will the Rukhsat (permission
to depart) be given to day ?" He said, " Yes ; and
for this reason I heg you now to give me a receipt
for five thousand tillahs. Three thousand which I
will give you now; one thousand for the Russian
slaves, whom I will deliver to you to-morrow ; and
one thousand tillahs, which you have to pay for Co-
nolly's and Stoddart's effects, for the bribes which I
have given to the people, and the hire of the Cara-
van Bashi." I exclaimed, " Great God ! can you

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 39

show me the account?" He showed me an account.
I said, " Give me this account." Nayeb. " Not now ;
but give me your receipt ; you have to do with the
Nayeb, who will not deceive you." I gave him the
receipt for five thousand tillahs.

In the evening, instead of the permission to de-
part, Makhram Cassem came with the following mes-
sage from the King : " His Majesty had already
ordered the letters to be written to the Queen of
England, and the presents which were intended for
Her Majesty the Queen of England were already
prepared, but His Majesty had just been informed
that the Vizier Mukhtar (Ambassador) of England,
at Teheraun, had offered one thousand tillahs as a
daily compensation, as long as the Bokhara Ambas-
sador was detained within the confines of Persia.
His Majesty the Ameer therefore was determined to
keep Joseph Wolff at Bokhara as long as his Ambas-
sador was detained in Persia."

This news was like a thunder-bolt to me. On
the receipt of this intelligence, I wrote the folio wing-
letter to Colonel Sheil :

To Colonel Sheil, at Teheraun, thence to be sent to Ms Excel-
lency Sir S. Canning, Constantinople, and thence to the
Earl of Aberdeen, who will kindly communicate the con-
tents of it to Captain Grover.

My dear Colonel Sheil, &c. Bokhara, May 15, 1844.

Ak Muhammed Beg, a powerful chief of Ttirko-

mauns, was already appointed as Ambassador to the Queen

40 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

of England from the King of Bokhara, of which I sent
to all of you a copy, and I was to set out on the 12th
instant for Meshed, after I had made my dua to His
Majesty, when he received a message from Meshed, that
the Assaff-ood-Dowla detained his Ambassador there on my
account. He is therefore determined to keep me until his
Ambassador comes back. I beg you therefore to send an
order from Muhammed Shah to the Assaif-ood-Dowla, that
he should immediately permit the Eljee of Bokhara to depart
from Meshed for Bokhara. Pray do so, for he (the King)
is a determined fellow, and would keep me ten years if the
Ambassador is not sent. I write this letter in the house of
our friend Nayeb Abdul Samut Khan, who has taken great
trouble about me.

I have recovered a journal. [The Nayeb did not give
me this journal, as he promised. It contained, among other
matters, a description of fortresses from Khokand to Bo-
khara. The official seal of Stoddart was also retained by
him.] I also have got the official seal of Stoddart. The
King does not attempt to justify his having murdered
Todderwise and Naselli, [I found Todderwise alive at
Teheraun, on my return from Bokhara. I asked him how
the report originated that the Nayeb had killed him at
Bokhara. He said that the Nayeb had invited him to see
him, for he knew him in India; but as he, Todderwise, was
informed of his character, he did not go, being fearful of
being enslaved, but another person, a German went, who was
put to death by the King, without seeing the Nayeb, and the
Nayeb supposed that it was Todderwise.] Poor Conolly
had done nothing but what every traveller does ; he kept a
journal, which made him suspected to be a spy.

You must pardon my confused style, for I am in a great
stew, not knowing how long I shall be kept. I am now
allowed to ride about in the town without a Makhram (pri-
vate chamberlain) of the King, and which even the Russian

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 41

Ambassador was not allowed when here. There is now no
probability of his putting me to death. He himself said to
the Nayeb, " Do not tell Joseph Wolff that Yar Muham-
med Khan has written to me that I should put him to death,
for it will frighten him." Pray send a copy of this letter to
India, and tell them that they should assist me from thence
and from England with money, for I must give some pre-
sents to those Makhrams who behaved exceedingly kind
to me; and Dil Assa Khan, the Eljee of the Assaff, almost
stripped me on the road; and after I had left Merve, I dis-
covered that Rajab had stolen several things, he was paid
by Nur Khyr Ullah in behalf of Colonel Stoddart, so
you need not pay him over again. What horrid rascals
those natives are! from the Prince down to the lowest sub-
ject! The Nayeb has behaved nobly towards me. A report
is spread about at Bokhara, that the Nayeb and myself sit
together the whole day shut up in a room and practise
witchcraft. Pray get the Ambassador soon sent off, and be
kind enough to send a copy of this letter to Lady Georgiana
also. Yours, &c.

Joseph Wolff.

The Nayeb informed me that last Sunday the King told
him these words: "We will spread about a report that we
march against Khokand, but the real object of the expedition
will be to take Shahr Sabz by surprise." It would be a great
pity if he should succeed. I must abstain from writing to
you anything now about the character of this court, for
obvious reasons; and besides this, you must know that I am
at present in a continual fever, and shall be so until I shall
be at Meshed. I have taken six hundred tillahs from the
Nayeb for expenses, [The Nayeb had made me his debtor to
this amount, in presents to Makhrams, which I afterwards
discovered he never gave to them.] for the recovery of
Conolly's effects, and for official presents to the Makhrams,
Sheikhawl, &c. Pray honour my bills, and I shall arrange

42 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

with you matters. Abbott authorized me to draw, in case of
need, one hundred tomauns on him. The inclosed is a copy
of a letter of the King of Bokhara, which I am to take with
me to England.

I took the Nayeb alone, and begged him to give
me back the receipt mentioned above, but he swore
by Abdullah Khan, his son, four years of age, to
speak on the Sunday following to the Ameer, to
procure me permission to depart.

With regard to the Russian prisoners, he sent
first of all for an old woman, one hundred and
eleven years of age, who spoke Turkish, and the
Bokhara Persian, and remembered the Empress
Catherine ; and when I asked her whether she would
return to Russia, she smiled, and said, at the same
time striking the ground with her staff, " Here at
Bokhara I shall be buried. What shall I do in
Russia?" I gave her one tillah, for which, in sign
of gratitude, she knocked her head six or seven times
to the ground, and departed, always moving her
head, and saying, " I return to Russia ? I return to
to Russia ?" He next sent for some other Russians
with the same success. Some of them said, " We
cannot return, for we are deserters." Others, " We
are married here, and have wives and children."

Behadur Hussein Ali, and other officers of the
Nayeb, then took me alone, and said, "You will
find at last that the Nayeb is a Haram Zadeh (son

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 43

of ), who treated Stoddart and Conolly as he

does you, and Boutenieff, the Russian Ambassador,
whom he detained as long as he could, always pre-
tending to be their friend." Behadur then took me
alone, and pulling off his cap, and lifting his eyes to
heaven, said, in a kind of despair, "Oh, Conolly
Saib ! Oh, Conolly Saib ! thou wert deceived by
that Haram-Zadeh the Nayeb. He has also
deceived me, allured me with promises to Cabul
from. Lahore, and from Cabul to Bokhara ; and now
he has forced me to marry, and having made a slave
of me, will at last kill me, and take the few
tomauns I have from me; but, what is worse, he
has already made me his accomplice in every evil
work he has committed. I am the keeper of those
prisoners, who will never see the light of day again,
for he has killed many of them, and I shall be killed
also. But I must tell you all, for I am an Indian
Mussulman, and have eaten the salt of English
people. I knew Mr. Vigne at Cabul ; he has drawn
my portrait, and has given me many a rupee. I am
not an Iranee (Persian), I am a Hindee, and have
eaten the salt of Englishmen. The Nayeb will kill
you at last, after he has got money from you. He
gave money to Conolly, and after Conolly was dead
he got it back again. Pray do not tell him what I
tell you, — he will kill me — he will kill me. I am
not an Iranee, I am a Hindee, and have eaten the

44 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

salt of Englishmen." This account of Behadur,
delivered with every mark of deep sincerity of
feeling, was amply confirmed by Mirza Muhammed
Noori and the Yavar, i.e. Major of the Sirbaas, who
at the same time added, u That cursed Nayeb
receives every year thirty thousand tillahs from the
King, in order to equip the soldiers, and for the
cannon foundry, but he puts the money into his
pocket, and suffers the poor soldiers to go barefoot
and starve. He is an enemy to his own country,
Persia; and though a Guzl-Bash himself, woe to
that Guzl-Bash who is sold to him as a slave. He
never gives them their liberty, except by paying
to him three times as much as an Usbeck would
demand. Here is Assad Ullah Beg, who has been
demanded three times by the Haje of Persia ; and it
wrould only cost the Nayeb a few words to the King
to give him liberty to return to Persia, but he has
not spoken one single word to the King."

And I know myself that Assad Ullah Beg was
only sent back to Persia by the Nayeb after having
paid to him ninety tillahs, the whole earnings of the
poor fellow for several years; and besides this a
shawl worth one hundred tillahs, whilst an Usbeck
would not have demanded more than twenty tillahs
for the ransom of Assad Ullah Beg.

But to proceed with my Narrative. I was just
on the point of returning to my lodging in town

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 45

when a curious and rather alarming incident oc-
curred.

Hassan Shirazi, formerly servant to Colonel Stod-
dart, entered the garden, and seeing the Nayeb, he
said, " My heart trembles as often as I come here."
The Nayeb said, "Go to hell, you father of the
Curse. Who tells you to come here ?" He replied,
il Many have left their heads and bones here, who
have entered your house." The Nayeb replied,
with a horrid expression, " Go to hell." The
Nayeb then said, " To show you what sort of a
fellow that is, when Colonel Stoddart was put to
death, this fellow, his servant, being suspected of
some designs against the Government, was sent to
the Black Well. When there he was asked by one
of the Makhrams, by order of the Ameer, * What
conversations did the Nayeb hold with Colonel
Stoddart?' Then that fellow, Hassan Shirazi, to
implicate me, replied, ' That Stoddart and I had
agreed that if English or AfFghaun troops should
come to Balkh, to join them,' and he also stated that
Stoddart and I (the Nayeb) had read together two
letters which came from Cabul, and then burned
them."

Now it is very remarkable that if Hassan Shirazi
was such a bad fellow as the Nayeb tried to make
out, and a traitor to Stoddart as well as to himself,
that he (the Nayeb) previous to this had recom-

46 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

mended Hassan Shirazi as a servant, to accompany
me back to Persia. But the fact was this, that the
Nayeb maintained a secret intercourse with Hassan
Shirazi and the other servants of Colonel Stoddart
and Captain Conolly, to betray them first, and seize
on their effects afterwards ; and as there is no friend-
ship among thieves, they naturally suspected each
other. When I now think over, what sort of company
I have par force kept in these regions, I am fully
convinced, as all at Bokhara were, that the Nayeb
intended to include me in the number of his victims.
I cannot but look back with horror and dismay on
that period. The countenance of that villain, Abdul
Samut Khan, fell daily more and more, exhibiting
daily fresh features of villany, the mark of Cain
grew darker and darker in his vile physiognomy,
and so far from imagining evil where no evil was,
which has been imputed to me, the quantity of evil
he not only meditated, but actually committed, ex-
ceeded the bounds of ordinary imagination. My
readers will perceive that I trusted the villain only
too long.

I must proceed. I mounted my horse, and
proceeded to the Toorah Khane, but returned the
next day to the Nayeb, to urge him for leave
to depart. Then the Nayeb informed me that
he had put in irons Hassan Shirazi, and incar-
cerated him on my account, for he had just found

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 47

out that he was married, and had given to his wife
the four tillahs, which he the Nayeb had given him
on my account as wages beforehand, and had told
his wife that she should go to a certain village, and
that when he had stolen my money he would join
her; but the real reason for incarcerating him was,
that the Nayeb began to be afraid of him.

48 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

CHAPTER XIV.

Disasters of the Seikh Army in Lassa. Csoma de Koros; his Re-
searches ; publishes a Dictionary of the Thibet Language. The Sur-
veillance over Dr. Wolff grows more rigid. Barhurdar, an Arme-
nian, ordered not to visit Dr. Wolff by the Ameer. Nasir Khayr
Ullah, a Kaffer Seeah Poosh, mistaken for Colonel Stoddart from
the fairness of his complexion. Conversation between Dr. Wolff
and the Nayeb. Letter of Sir Richmond Shakspeare. The Nayeb
detains in his possession the Letter of Lord Ellenborough to the
Ameer. Nayeb alarmed ; advises Dr. Wolff to communicate to the
Ameer the fact of the Letter having arrived; Dr. Wolff does so.
Hassan Caboolee dispatched. Dr. Wolff discovers that, though
apparently sent, he did not really go. Affghaun Bear Leader
imprisoned as a Spy; he tells Dr. Wolff that the Ameer sent a
Lion to Russia as a Present to the Czar, for which his Ambassador
was munificently rewarded; but that the Czar refused after the
Execution of the British Officers to hold any further Intercourse
with the Ameer. The Ameer goes to war with Khokand and
Oratepa; orders in his absence the Guards over Dr. Wolff to be
doubled, and tells him that his Departure will depend on the success
of his Expedition. Dr. Wolff writes to Lady Georgiana and his
Son. Conversations with Dil Assa Khan, Abdullah, and others.
Dr. Wolff bribes the Guards. Previous War with Khokand ; King
made Prisoner and put to death by the Ameer of Bokhara ; his
Wife and Child barbarously murdered. Abdul Samut Khan the
chief Agent in the Slaughter. At the news of the Death of Stoddart
and Conolly the Inhabitants of Khokand renew the War. The
Ameer retreats before them and the Khivites. Dr. Wolff contrives
to acquaint the British Envoy at Teheraun of the movements of
the Ameer, and warns the Town of Shahr Sabz of the King's
intention to attack them. Ameer says that nothing prospers with
him since the Death of the English Officers. The King of Kho-
kand offers Dr. Wolff an Asylum in his Dominions.

Previous to my visit to the Nayeb mentioned in the
preceding chapter, Muhammedans from Cashmeer
called on me, and gave me some information respect-

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 49

ing the great disasters which the Seikhs had ex-
perienced on their march to Lassa, the capture of
Thibet, and residence of the Grand Lama. Several
thousands of the Seikh army had been frozen to
death, and many soldiers had been found frozen
in the very attitude of defence, so that actually
the Chinese, when approaching them, doubted
whether they were alive or dead, and dared not
disturb them. They also told me that the people
of Thibet have a prophecy, that the whole coun-
try will fall under the English sway. Some
of these Cashmeerians were acquainted with the
Hungarian traveller, Csoma de Koros, who spent
much time in one of the convents of the Lamas near
Ladack, where he made researches into the origin of
the Hungarian language and of the Huns. This
extraordinary man set out in 1826, if I do not
mistake, for this purpose, from Paris, and went vid
Constantinople to Persia, in the disguise of a der-
veesh. On his arrival at Teheraun, he received
the kind hospitality of Sir Henry Willock. Thence
he went to Bokhara, Lahore, Ladack, and Calcutta.
He wrote the only Dictionary of the Thibet lan-
guage, I believe, extant, and then died. The Cash-
meerians spoke to me also of Mr. Vigne and Baron
Hugel.

The surveillance over me kept getting more and
Vol. II. E

50 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

more severe. An Armenian merchant, Barhnrdar
by name, from Astrachan, sent me word by Konli,
a servant of Dil Assa Khan, one of the servants that
was kind to me, that I should excuse his absence,
for the Ameer had sent him a strict order not to
approach me.

The day following my last visit to the Nayeb,
Nasir Khayr Ullah entered the garden. Nasir Khayr
Ullah was by birth a Kaffer Seeah-Poosh, who are
called by many Muhammedans, from the fairness of
their complexion, Frankee, and this is the reason he
was mistaken by some for Stoddart himself, whose
friend he pretended to be, or perhaps was. He
intended, he said, to go to Teheraun, to get some
property there. This accounts for the information
that Layard obtained at Constantinople, of Stoddart
being alive, and passing by the name of Nasir Khan,
for Nasir Khayr Ullah has the name of Nasir Khan.
He was formerly a slave, but acquired considerable
property at Bokhara. He showed to me forged let-
ters from certain people who pretended to have car-
ried the bodies of Stoddart and Conolly to India, for
which service he (Nasir Khan) says, that he gave to
them one hundred and fifty tillahs.

The following conversations took place on that
day between me and the Nayeb.

W. Nayeb, to-day a Jew called on me, and
showed to me a note evidently written by Shakes-

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 51

peare when at Jelaal-Abad; the contents of the
note, as far as I can recollect, are as follows :

Hussein Cabulee is the bearer of a letter written by
the Right Honourable the Governor-General of India to His
Highness the Ameer of Bokhara, for which the bearer has
received one hundred rupees, and after having brought an
answer from His Highness, he will, on delivery to any British
authority, receive five hundred rupees more.

(Signed) Shakespeare, Military Secretary.
Camp Jelaal-Abad.

I knew that such a letter had arrived at Bokhara,
and even your brother, Hajee Ibraheem, told me
himself so.

Nayeb (pale and evidently discomposed). I am
astonished that I have not heard of this letter before.
Nasir Khan has just told me that a Cabiil man was
in possession of such a letter, but he says that he had
left the letter at Balkh.

As Nasir Khan was already gone, he said that he
must send to him to hear more about it ; for when
he (Abdul Samut Khan) had told the King that
Joseph Wolff asserted that the Governor-General had
written to His Majesty, His Majesty replied, " Where
is that letter 9" In the evening, to my utter sur-
prise, the Nayeb produced the same note of Shake-
speare which I saw in the hand of the Jew.

I heard then by Mirza Muhammed Noori, by
the chief servant of the Kasi Kelaun, by Mullah
Makhsoom, a Tatshick, and by Moolam Beyk, that

E 2

52 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

the Nayeb had been all the time in possession of the
letter of Lord Ellenborough, and the other of Cap-
tain Shakespeare, and that it was by a contrivance
of the Nayeb with Hassan Caboole that the note of
Shakespeare was shown to me by the Jew Moollah
Mesheakh. The letter of Sir Richmond Shake-
speare, together with the letter of Lord Ellen-
borough, is, as will be seen, in the hands of Colonel
Sheil; and as, according to the testimony of the
above respectable people, the letter with Captain
Shakespeare's note arrived before the execution of
Colonel Stoddart and Captain Conolly, it is evident
that the official date of 1259 Hejira, corresponding
with July, 1843, — which was given to me by order
of the King and Abdul Samut Khan at the begin-
ning,— is the correct date, and not as I supposed
erroneous when I arrived at Teheraun from Bo-
khara. Abdul Samut Khan must have known that
to be a mistake; for, though the date of Shake-
speare's note is no longer in my memory, I well
remember that, when calculating over the date of
the note of Shakespeare, and its arrival at Bokhara,
it could only have been one year before my arrival
there. It could only have been in 1259, as the
Ameer and Nayeb first told me.

On the Sunday following these events, the Nayeb
went to the King, and after two hours he came back
to the garden, and said, " Now you have leave to

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 53

depart with all speed. The King asked me what
kind of person the Ambassador ought to be ; I told
him that he ought to be an Usbeck, — a stout fellow,
with thick head and little beard."

W. When will all be ready ?

N. After four or five days.

W. This is too long.

N. Oh, you must have patience, for it is an act
of the King. Everything is ready.

Whilst we were sitting together in the evening,
Mirza Muhammed Nooree, his secretary, and
others of his officers with him, he said, " Now you
could show to the King that the English people
speak the truth; write to him that such a letter
actually exists here, sent from the Governor-General,
and that His Majesty should cause search to be
made for it."

W . I shall do no such thing, for this would only
be the cause of another delay ; and I do not care what
opinion he entertains of me if he only lets me go.

The officers sitting by, and Mirza Muhammed
Nooree, agreed with me, that this would cause a
delay ; but the Nayeb said, "By the head of Abdullah
Khan, my son, it will not. Write ! I tell you, write !"

I wrote to the King. His Majesty sent immedi-
ately to find the man, who came instantly to the
garden, escorted by the Makhram, and also Nasir
Khan with him.

54 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

Hassan Caboolee (in apparent fright). " Nayeb,
Nasir Khan frightened me, and therefore I did not
deliver the letter ; now they will kill me. Hasrat
(His Majesty) will now kill me." The Nayeb
said to him, " Be not afraid — say where is the
letter." And gave him a significant hint. He
said, " At Balkh." He was despatched immediately
to Balkh at my cost. Six days after, I saw him
at Bokhara, which I told the Nayeb; he replied,
that somebody else went there on his account.

At this period, I was brought by the three
guards to the garden of the Dastar Khanjee, where
I met with an Affghaun, who came here with a
menagerie of wild animals two years ago, and as
the King suspected him to be a spy of the King
of Lahore, he detained him prisoner at Bokhara.
He however displayed a Muhammedan indifference
about his fate. He spoke to me with high regard
of the English nation. He had taught his bear to
dance, of which he gave a proof to me.

Of this person also I learnt that the Ameer
sent, previous to the decapitation of Colonel Stod-
dart and Captain Conolly, a lion as a present to the
Emperor of Russia, for which his Ambassador was
munificently rewarded by the Emperor; but after
the execution of both officers, the Ameer sent again
an Ambassador to Russia, with presents, but on
his arrival ~at Orenbourg, he was informed by the

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 55

Governor of Orenbourg that the Autocrat would
have no more intercourse with the King of Bo-
khara, nor was His Majesty the Emperor inclined
to accept any letters from the Ameer. The poor
man who was sent as Ambassador returned to Bo-
khara, and has been since in disgrace.

In the month of June, when the Ameer went
with his army to Samarcand and Khokand, for the
purpose of reconquering Oratepa, which had re-
belled against him, and also Khokand, my prospects
of ever being set at liberty were but weak ; for,
previous to his departure, he gave strict orders to
watch me, and at the same time doubled the guards,
and gave me to understand that my receiving per-
mission to depart depended on the success of his
expedition. I therefore wrote the following letter
in my Bible to Lady Georgiana and my son Henry,
which I forwarded to Colonel Sheil; but Colonel
Sheil not opening the Bible, did not know what to
do with it, and kept the Bible with him until my
return to Teheraun. Here is the letter :

To the Right Honourable Lad?/ Georgiana M. Wolff, and
Henry Drummond Charles Wolff.
My dearest Wife and Son, Bokhara, June, 1844.

I am still detained at Bokhara, and the King has now
marched against Khokand. Whatever may happen to me,
dearest wife and son, remember that you yourselves have
nothing to reproach yourselves, for it was my own choice to
make the journey, in order to liberate the "prisoners, and

56 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

remember that our Lord Jesus Christ is now with me. I
am not unkindly treated, and am not without hopes of being
allowed at last to return with the Persian Ambassador;
though one cannot depend upon the promise of an unprin-
cipled tyrant, and Yar Muhammed Khan of Heraut has
advised the Ameer by three Ambassadors to put me to death.
God has given me strength to await his will with patience and
resignation. Pray amuse yourself, and go to Wiesbaden in
summer. I am well treated, but am not allowed to stir out
without three guards, and am strictly watched. Tell my
dear Henry that he should pardon me if ever I have hurt
his feelings, and so I beg you to pardon me. I have never
ceased to love you tenderly, both of you, and thank God that
we are believers in Christ Jesus.

Your affectionate husband and father,

Joseph Wolff.

Dil Assa Khan entered my room with eight
Mervee, and he began thus, saying, " What an Eng-
lishman are you ! how stingy ! Todd Saheb, at He-
raut, gave to the Hazarah, near Heraut, two thou-
sand five hundred tillahs (ducats) for one horse.
Pottinger Saheb gave every year thirty thousand
tillahs to Yar Muhammed Khan, and do you think
that I shall be satisfied with two hundred tillahs?
Two hundred tillahs are good for nothing. It is for
that reason that I have played the traitor, which I
never would have done, if you had given me three
thousand tillahs !"

Then his people began : "And what have you
done for us ? You ought to have given two hundred
tillahs to every one of us, and thus you would have

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 57

exalted the Queen of England, and made her name
immortal. Instead of this you gave us only a few
tengas (pence) to pay for our bath. Do you think
that the Ameer will let you go from here without our
interceding for you? Far from it. Abdul Samut
Khan himself tells us that you ought to make us
comfortable."

Abdullah, my servant, entered then my room and
said, " The whole town of Bokhara speak with cer-
tainty that the Ameer will put you to death, for it is
the wish of Abdul Samut Khan, and all the Serker-
deha (grandees) ; and the King of Persia, being a
Sheah, has no influence at Bokhara ; but if you satisfy
our demands, we will save your life." I turned
them all out of the room.

Then a tailor of Abdul Samut Khan entered,
saying, " Abdul Samut Khan has given to-day one
hundred tillahs to the Shekhawl ; he does everything
for you, but you must spend your money ; if not, he
will fail in his trouble." I turned him out of my
room.

Then Ameer Sarog, and Kaher Kouli, who had
behaved exceedingly well for a while, so that I gave
them a testimonial for their good conduct, said,
" Mullah Youssuf Wolff, tillahs (ducats) are sweet ;
we dream of tillahs day and night, and we dreamt
last night that you, on your return to England, sate
near your Monarch, and all the grandees of your

58 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

country kissed the hem of your garment. The most
beautiful women crowded around you, and desired
to be your wives, and you took the daughter
of the Queen as your lawful wife. * * * * You
will live in the finest palace, except the Queen's,
and fanned by dancing girls ; and if you shall say to
her, ' Oh, my Queen, cut off the head of this or that
person,' she will immediately follow your advice.
Both of us, Kaher Kouli and I, Ameer Sarog, dreamt
this at one and the same time, and therefore it will
become true."

Then the Guards entered, and told me that they
Would admit any one in case that I gave them money,
This I was forced to do.

The war with Khokand commenced about this
period, and the Ameer, leaving Abdul Samut Khan
to follow him, proceeded thither. This was the
second war with the people of that unfortunate coun-
try in which the present Ameer had engaged. I
shall here give the details of the first.

Muhammed Ali Khan reigned at that time at
Khokand, a very mild monarch, and fond of Euro-
peans. He treated Conolly with great distinction,
and always advised him not to go to Bokhara. But
Muhammed Ali Khan was addicted to the vice of
drinking, and to women, which gave time to Nasir
Ullah Behadur, the Ameer of Bokhara, to fit out an
army against him ; and he marched with several

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 59

thousand irregular troops and four hundred regular
troops, and six pieces of artillery, commanded by
Abdul Samut Khan, towards Khokand, in the year
1842, after Conolly had left the town. He took
Khokand by surprise. Muhammed Ali Khan in-
tended to escape, but was made prisoner, with his
wife. The cruel Nasir Ullah Behadur, at the advice
of Abdul Samut Khan, put not only Muhammed Ali
Khan to death, but also his wife, pregnant with
child. The child was taken out of her and mur-
dered. The slaughter continued a whole day. Ab-
dul Samut Khan told me, smiling, " I never give
quarter to any prisoner, I always kill every one."
As soon as the inhabitants of Khokand received the
news that both Colonel Stoddart and Captain Conolly
had been put to death, they made themselves again
independent, and elected the nephew of Muhammed
Ali Khan, Sheer Ali Khan by name, as their King,
and made an alliance with the King of Khiva against
the King of Bokhara. The Ameer of Bokhara
marched against Khiva, but was defeated ; on his
return to Bokhara he said, " My bowels of compas-
sion did not allow me to shed more blood !"

During my stay at Bokhara he prepared again
an expedition against Khokand, and arrived near
Oratepa. As soon as he had learnt that Sheer Ali
Khan came out to meet him with eleven thousand
Ghirgese,he returned. I sent, previous to his march,

60 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

a Jew to Bokhara, to give notice to Sheer Ali Khan
of the design of the Ameer. My readers have
already perceived that I had given notice to Colonel
Sheil of the same. For though he had declared that
in case that he should be beaten he would put me to
death, I thought it advisable, for the sake of hu-
manity, to risk my life. He was beaten! I also
was informed that he intended to take by surprise
Shahr Sabz, a town which never was subdued by the
Kings of Bokhara ; for the surrounding country can
be inundated, so that he cannot bring there artillery,
and besides this the Shahr Sabz are very good horse-
men. I therefore sent there also a Jew, giving;
notice to the Khan of the design of the Ameer to
surprise Shahr Sabz on his way to Khokand. When
the Ameer came near Shahr Sabz he found the whole
country, in consequence, inundated, so that his army
went towards Samarcand by another direction.
The Ameer was heard to say, " Since I have killed
these English people I do not prosper in anything."
I had for about ten days at this period a Makhram,
a kind-hearted guard, who allowed Muhammedans
to come to me ; among others a Cashmeerian came to
me, who said, " Sheer Ali Khan, the King of Kho-
kand, is very anxious that you should come to Kho-
kand, in order that he may, through you, send
presents to the Queen of England."

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 61

CHAPTER XV.

The Mervee wish to know the Story of Napoleon ; Dr. Wolff Recounts it
in an Oriental fashion. He amuses the tedious hours of Captivity
by telling various Anecdotes. His Anecdote of the Arabian Derveesh
reaches the ears of the Daster Khanjee, who reports it to the Ameer.
The Kasi Kelaun assures Dr. Wolff that the British Officers were
put to death, and that the King deeply repented of the act. The
Kasi Kelaun warned the Ameer of the Consequences. All the Jews
knew of the Execution the same day, and the Inhabitants of
Bokhara, in town and country, speak of it as a matter well known.
Dr. Wolff tells an Anecdote of Frederick the Great of Russia. Dr.
Wolff laughs at Ameer Sarog's Vanity, and tells him the Tale of the
Derveesh with the White Beard.

Some of the Mervee who called on me at this time,
wished me to make them acquainted with the life
of Napoleon. I will give my readers an idea of the
manner in which European facts must be told to
Eastern people. I began thus — bearing in mind that
much of what I said would be considered as refer-
able to my own circumstances: " There is a country
in Frankistaun, which is called the Land of the
Francees, which had a great Padishah. He had
under his dominion, besides the land of Francees, a
little island, which is called Corsica, in which is a
little town with the name of Ajaccio. One of the
Serkerdeha residing there was named Bonaparte,
who had several sons ; the name of the elder was
Lucien — of the younger, Napoleon, who had a great
inclination for becoming a Yoos-Bashi, or some other

62 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

chief among the soldiers; but as, in Europe, no per-
son can become a chief of soldiers without having
first studied the art of soldiery in a school purposely
established for that object, Napoleon was sent to a
school in the land of Francees, in a small town
called Brienne, where he kept but little company,
and made such progress that he was sent to the
capital of Francees, Paris. At this time the people
of the land of the Francees rose against their
King, for, on their side, they had lost the fear of
God; and on the part of the King, he was not
governed by wise counsellors : and it came to such a
pitch that they at last put to death the King and the
Queen. And as that King and Queen were related
to other Padishahs of Europe, and especially to the
Padishah of Nemsa, i. e. Germany, they became
involved in war, especially as the greater number of
the people of the land of Francees began to deny all
religion, and even the existence of a God, and perse-
cuted those who said, ' We will rather die than give
up our belief in God and in Jesus.'

"At that time, as I said, the young Napoleon
was brought from the school, and distinguished
himself at the taking of towns which were not
willing to yield to the rebels; so that Napoleon,
who was first Yoos-Bashi, was made Sirhenk,
Colonel; and in the war with the Emperor of
Nemsa, he distinguished himself by his intrepidity,

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 03

so that he became Serteeb, i.e. General; at which
time he became acquainted with a lady, by whom
it was foretold by a Kawlee-Berband (gipsy) that
she should become a great Queen, but then fall
again.

"Napoleon then went to Egypt with an army,
took the whole of it, but was driven out by the
Englees; and after that he had a battle with the
combined armies of the King of Nemsa and the
Emperor of Russia, in which he beat both of them.
He was made Padishah of the Land of the Francees,
and thus the prophecy of the Kawlee-Berband was
fulfilled. But Napoleon was not satisfied. He
wished to become like Timur Kurican, not only a
Jehaun Geer, but also a Jehaun Dar, and he became
proud ; and he said as the Prophet Isaiah (the com-
fort of God and peace upon him !) predicted : ' I
will sit in the sides of the north;' and he went
therefore to Russia, where he was overcome by the
snow, and by the army of Russia, and defeated.

" At last all the armies of the different Kings of
Frankistaun, even the Emperor of Nemsa, whom he
had compelled to give him his daughter, combined
against him, when he was beaten by the great
Serteeb of the English, Arthur Wellington, and the
Serteeb of the Prussians, Bliicher. He was made
the prisoner of the English, and died in an island
which is situated between the land of the Ghurb and

64 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

Hindustaun; and the prophecy of Isaiah was thus
fulfilled: 'They that see thee shall narrowly look
upon thee, and consider thee. Is this the man that
made the earth to tremble, and did shake kingdoms ?
that made the world as a wilderness and destroyed
the cities thereof? that opened not the house of his
prisoners V And the prediction of the Kawlee-
Berband was fulfilled, that his Queen should fall
again."

My readers will be surprised to perceive, that
though a prisoner, and not allowed to stir out of
the house unwatched, that I could amuse myself by
entertaining those very people who betrayed me
and imprisoned me, by telling them different anec-
dotes; but I did so. They certainly thought me
the strangest of captives. They were one evening
all seated around me, Dil Assa Khan, Ismael Khan,
Kouli, Kaher Kouli, Ameer Sarog, and others of
the Mervee. Each of these fellows was well calcu-
lated to be a torch leader in the race of rascality.

I told them the following story. They were all
silent. There was a derveesh in Arabia, renowned
in the whole of Arabistaun as a witty man. When
that derveesh passed the house of a great Mufti, he
wrote in Arabic three times upon the wall the word
Donkey, and to each of these three donkeys he
wrote a meaning. He said, the first donkey is he
who has a watch and asks what o'clock it is ; and

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 65

the second donkey is he who has a horse and Who
walks on foot. Here I paused, and said nothing-,
when the whole body of my hearers exclaimed,
"Who is the third?" and I said, "Every one of
you."

This anecdote reached the ears of the Daster
Khanjee, who wrote to the King, then on the expe-
dition to Khokand, the following words : " Youssuf
Wolff, the Englishman, Your Majesty's slave, is
now very cheerful, and gets fat from Your Ma-
jesty's bounty; and he has taken in the whole
party who visited him with the following anec-
dote."

I had also a visit at this time from the Kasi
Kelaun, relative to Stoddart and Conolly. My
readers will ask me, and I have been asked in Eng-
land, What evidences have you that Stoddart and
Conolly are dead ? 1 say, first, that there is no doubt
that the King would have given anything to restore
them to me. Even the Kasi Kelaun, on this secret
visit, told me that he had never so repented of any
act as of that one: and the Kasi Kelaun himself
also said, one afternoon when all around me were
asleep, u I warned His Majesty, but he will never
hear advice, and I wTarned him one hour before he
perpetrated the act." All the Jews knew it the
very day of the execution, and they all told me of
it; and thus every inhabitant of Bokhara, and of
Vol. II. F

66 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

all the country around, speak of it as a matter well
known.

On another occasion I told a large party the
following anecdote, which I was obliged to intro-
duce somewhat oddly to make it intelligible :

A great Padishah reigned in Nemsa, whose name
was Frederick, and who went by the name of The
Great. He waged a seven years' war with many
Padishahs, and though his men were few, he routed
all his foes. As the language of the Nemsa is
different from the language of the Francees, he one
day gave the following order : "I, Frederick, have
condescended to order, that if at any time one of the
men of the country of the Francees comes and says,
6 I wish to become a soldier in the army of the Pa-
dishah Frederick,' the Sirhenks and my officers are
hereby commanded not to enlist him ; as the Fran-
cees are never able to learn the language of the
Nemsa, and give, consequently, a great deal of
trouble." However, there came one day a man from
the land of the Francees, who was very tall, and, as
the Sirhenks knew that Frederick the Great liked
tall soldiers, they said, " Let us take him, and try to
teach him the language of Nemsa, in order that the
King may not find out that he is a Francees."
However, all their attempts to teach him the lan-
guage of Nemsa were vain, so that they taught him
by rote the answers to three questions, which the

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 67

King asked every year of every soldier, and of which
he never changed the order. The first question
which the King asked of every soldier was, " How
old are you ?" To which the soldier replied, giving
his age. The second was, "How long have you
been in the service?" To which the soldier replied
according to circumstances. The third question
was, " Are you contented with pay and food ?" To
which he answered by the word Both. The Sirhenk
taught the soldier (the Francees) the following words,
as answers to the three questions : " Twenty years,"
" Three years," and "Both." These he got by heart,
and they told him to say at the first question, Twenty
years ; at the second, Three years ; and at the third,
Both. The King arrived after a year, and reviewed
his soldiers, and put questions to every one of them,
according to the usual order. But when he came to
the tall man of Francees, he changed the order,
putting the first question, " How many years have
you been in my service ?" He answered, " Twenty
years." The second question of the King was,
" How old are you ?" To which he replied,
" Three." Hasrat then demanded, " Am I a don-
key, or you a donkey?" To which he replied,
" Both."

At another time Ameer Sarog, the old roguish
Turkomaun, sitting in the company of others with
me, boasted that he had the finest beard in the

F 2

68 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

company, and that it was completely white. 1 re-
plied, " Ameer Sarog, do you know the dream of
a derveesh? A derveesh dreamt one day that he
saw standing before him an old man with a fine
venerable beard : the derveesh said to him, ' Oh,
I know thee who thou art; thou shalt not deceive
me with thy fine white beard. I know thee, that
thou art Satan,' and began to pull out his beard.
Upon which the derveesh awoke, and had his own
beard pulled out." I then said to Ameer Sarog,
" Take care that you have not a similar dream, for
then you will lose your beard to a certainty." They
all burst into a fit of laughter, and said, " Don't
boast of your venerable beard in the presence of
Youssuf Wolff, for he laughs in your beard."

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 69

CHAPTER XVI.

Abdul Samut Khan told Dr. Wolff that he was the chief Instigator of
the Slaughter at Khokand in the first War ; his Motives were to
create a Feud between the States, which he trusted would end in
the Death of the Ameer. Abdul Samut Khan said that the first
Expedition against Khokand was by the advice of Russia. People of
Khokand have since made an Alliance with Russia. Policy of Russia
was to bring this about by urging the Ameer to war on them when
they would require Aid. Russians intend to erect a Fortress at
Hasrat Sultan. People from Cabul, Kashmeer, and Scinde call on
Dr. Wolff; they praise highly Sir Charles Napier. Affghauns from
Cabul ascribe the Disasters of the British Army to the Immoral
Conduct of the Officers. Determined Conduct of Major Rawlinson ;
he puts to Death an Affghaun for Murder. Manners and Customs
of the Muhammedan Mullahs. Diligence of Muhammedans in
copying the Koran; Propaganda and British and Foreign Bible
Society discharge the same Office by the Christians. The Bible
would be nearly extinct in the East but for these Societies. Arrival
of Abbas Kouli Khan, the Persian Ambassador ; he tells Dr. Wolff
that the Shah, Haje, and Assaff-ood-Dowla had strongly recom-
mended him to bring Dr. Wolff with him, or to send him on before
him. Nayeb sends for Dr. Wolff; informs him that Yar Muham-
med Khan had sent three Ambassadors to Bokhara, stating that
Colonel Sheil had called the Ameer a Robber in the presence of the
Russian and Yar Muhammed Khan's Ambassadors, of Dr. Wolff,
and the Bokhara Ambassador; therefore Yar Muhammed Khan
advised the Ameer to strike off Dr. Wolff's Head. Nayeb offers
Dr. Wolff his Protection. Turkish Officer dies suddenly in the
Nayeb's Garden. Another Conversation with the Nayeb. The
Nayeb reports Abbas Kouli Khan's Mission untruly. Dr. Wolff
tries to escape. The Nayeb violates his promise to protect Dr.
Wolff. The King sends for him. Dr. Wolff charges the Nayeb
with the Murder of Stoddart and Conolly; the Nayeb owns it.
Dr. Wolff again tries to escape through a Water Hole from the
Garden of the Nayeb to the House of the Yavver. While there a
Woman is introduced to him; he is aware of the Stratagem to

70 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

compel him by her means to embrace Muhammedanism, and drives
her from him. Ordered by the King to appear before him ; leaves
the Garden of Abdul Samut Khan; presents himself before the
Ameer, who receives him sternly. Ordered to the Toora Khane and
close Confinement ; calls on Abbas Kouli Khan, who vows to save
him. The King sends word to him that he may quit Bokhara in
two ways; leaves to His Majesty the choice of either. King sets
out for Samarcand.

Relative to the first war on Khokand, I have stated
that Abdul Samut Khan was the chief instigator of
the fearful slaughter which then took place. The
reasons that induced Abdul Samut Khan to advise
the King of Bokhara to put to death the King of
Khokand, and to massacre as many as possible of
the inhabitants, were, that there might be an eternal
blood feud between the two States. This feud he
trusted would end in the death of the Ameer. These
circumstances he communicated to me himself.

At the time when this miscreant pretended to be
my friend, he told me also another highly important
circumstance, which was this : that BouteniefF, the
Russian ambassador, strongly advised the King of
Bokhara to make war on Khokand before the first
expedition ; and it is remarkable that since he made
war for the first time, the people of Khokand, as
Abdul Samut Khan told me, have entered into an
alliance with Russia ; and it is a subject much can-
vassed, that the Russians intend to erect a fortress
at or near the city called Hazrat Sultan, otherwise
called Tiirkistaun.

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 71

On another day, during the expedition of the
King- to Khokand, people from Cabul, Kashmeer,
and Scinde, called on me; those of Scinde expressed
their highest admiration, not only of the valour and
heroism of Sir Charles Napier, but also of his justice
and equity. They said his name frightens the Po-
looj more than the mentioning of the approach of
an army; and I say it again, that I am sure that Sir
Charles Napier would be the fittest man for being
sent to Bokhara. But now I come to a very deli-
cate point. AfFghauns from Cabul at Bokhara, and
also after my departure from Bokhara through the
desert to Meshed, ascribed the disaster of the British
army, and the indignation of the people of Afighaun
against the army, to the conduct of several British
officers, whose names I forbear mentioning, and
who shocked the feelings of the natives by their
introducing into the country the "vices of Euro-
peans," and by the liberties they took with AfFghaun
women. We see from this, that the exertions of
judicious missionaries, who speak with the Muham-
medans about the name of Jesus, may not shock the
Orientals, but the immoralities of Europeans as-
suredly will. The general idea around Cabul, is,
that most of the British officers did not believe in a
God. At Candahar it is quite different; the names
of Major Rawlinson, of Nott, of Lugin, of Todd,
are mentioned with regard; and the following ac-

72 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

count which I heard at Bokhara about Major Raw-
linson pleased me very much, and the people who
related it spoke with admiration of Major Rawlin-
son's self-possession at the following occurrence.

An Affghaun in open daylight put to death an
Englishman at Candahar; he was brought bound
before Major Rawlinson. The Major addressed
him, "Why have you murdered that Saheb?"
The Affghaun answered, " I would kill you if my
hands were not bound." The Major, " Why so ?"
The Affghaun replied sternly, " What business have
you infidels to enter our home ? You infidels have
no business in our home. Affghanistaun belongs
to us, and it belonged to our ancestors. What
business have you in our home?" An Affghaun
present turned to Major Rawlinson, and in order
to save the criminal said to him, " Major, he is
mad." The murderer heard him, and said, "lam
not mad j I am full of understanding : these infidels
have no business in our home." Upon which the
Affghaun paid the penalty of his crime by death.

I have now to touch on another point, namely,
on the manners and customs of the Muhammedan
mullahs at Bokhara, and all over the world. The
dignity of Sheikh-Islam, of Cazi, of Muffti, of Imam-
Jumaa, are the highest which are in the Muham-
medan persuasion, and they correspond to those of
archbishops and bishops in the Christian Church,

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 73

and the honours conferred on them by the monarch
exceed those conferred on the Christian clergy by
any King : thus, for instance, the Sultan kisses the
hand of the Sheikh-Islam at Constantinople, and
the Ameer of Bokhara kisses the hand of the
Sheikh-Islam there ; yet those very Sheikh-Islams
are surrounded by the poor of their nation and the
poorest has free access to the Sheikh-Islam. We
frequently hear poor mullahs (priests) and others of
the poor laity say, " I must go to my Sheikh-Islam
at Bokhara ;" and I heard others say, " I must go
to the Imam-Jumaa at Meshed:" and this confi-
dence of the poor towards their clergy is also
prevalent among the Armenian, Greek, and Chal-
dean and Jacobite Christians, — "I must go up to
the Katokhikos at Ech-Miazin, in order to receive
relief:" one hears the same thing said in the Ar-
menian dwellings at Wagarshabat, and in those
around Mount Ararat. This confidence of the poor
in their prelates also prevails in the Roman Catholic
Church, and there exists also a strong reliance of
the poor on their ecclesiastical authorities among
the Lutherans in Germany. I frequently saw, in
the year 1811, the Superintendent-general Voigt,
at Saxe Weimar, and Dr. Flatt, at Tubingen,
surrounded by poor, and I heard those very super-
intendents frequently listening, not only to the
entreaties but even to the insulting remarks of the

74 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

poor, who arc often very impertinent ; I say I heard
them frequently listening to them with the greatest
attention. It were highly desirable that this pre-
vailed to a greater extent in Christian countries
among the dignitaries of their respective establish-
ments.

The Muhammedans arc also very diligent in
copying their Koran, on which account thousands of
copies are always extant. This is not the case with
copies of the Bible. Neither Jews nor Christians
have the means of obtaining many written copies of
their sacred documents ; and therefore, if the Propa-
ganda had not in former times, and the British and
Foreign Bible Society in our times, sent printed
copies to the East, the Christians would certainly
have been without any copies of the sacred records,
save a few preserved in convents.

At last, Abbas Kouli Khan, the Persian Ambas-
sador, on whom I knew my life depended, arrived.
I called on him the first day, when he told me that
Muhammed Shah, the Haje, and the AssafF-ood-
Dowla, had strongly recommended him either to
bring me back, or send me on before him ; but I was
scarcely with him a few minutes when the Nayeb
sent for me to give me important news. I immedi-
ately went to him, and he said that there had
arrived now three Ambassadors from Yar Muham-
med Khan, saying that Colonel Sheil and myself,

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 75

when at Teheraun, had quarrelled with the Bokhara
Ambassador; that Colonel Sheil had called the
Ameer a robber, who had stolen Stoddart and
Conolly's property; and that Colonel Sheil had
done so in the presence of the Russian and Yar
Muhammed Khan's Ambassadors j and that he (Yar
Muhammed Khan) therefore advised the King to
cut off my head ; but the Nayeb said, " Now
remain with me here in the garden ; if the King
does not send for you in a few days, I will let
you escape, either to Shahr-Sabz or Organtsh.
I swear to you by the head of Abdullah Khan — by
the Koran — that I will do so ; and if the King will
take you by force, I will beat the drum — drum !
drum ! drum ! and say, ' Halt, Front !' for I know
that the King will send you home. The King said
that he knew that Yar Muhammed Khan was a liar
and told me a few words which convince me that he
will not kill you ; i. e., 6 1 must send Joseph Wolff soon
away, for I have had wounds enough since I killed
Stoddart and Conolly.' "

A few days after this conversation a Turkish
officer, coming from Constantinople, and intending
to go to Khokand to see his mother there, and who
was already for some months under the surveillance
of the Nayeb, suddenly died in the garden of the
Nayeb whilst I was there. The Nayeb told me that
he had strangled himself, but he refused to show to

76 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

me his body; but all the officers of the Nayeb affirmed
that the Nayeb himself had caused him to be mur-
dered.

The day following, Makhram Kasem came to
have some private conversation with the Nayeb. I
retired a few minutes ; afterward the Nayeb called
out, " Youssuf Wolff, come here." I came ; he told
me " Makhram Kasem has just brought me a piece
of news, but fear not, for the King knows that the
intent of it is to involve him in a war with
England."

W. What news ?

Nayeb. " Abbas Kouli Khan has arrived here
with five requests from Muhammed Shah. The first
request of the King of Persia is, that he (the
Ameer) should put you to death. The Haje Mirza
Aghasee wrote the same. Those Kajar are fathers
of the curse, but fear not ; I shall see the King next
Sunday." I shut myself up in one of his rooms, and
prayed ; and soon after, when the Nayeb went to
his harem, Behadur, above mentioned, came to me,
and said, "I am not an Iranee (Persian), I am a
Hindee. I have eaten the salt of Englishmen. If
you like, I will let you escape, and bring you to
Khoollom, and thence go with you to India, but
don't tell the Nayeb of it." We agreed that we
should leave that very evening, but in the evening I
found a Carowal (guard) around my bed. I also

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 77

observed, that the Nayeb had sent a private message
to the King.

The morning following, a Makhram, whom I
hitherto had not seen, came in great agitation, and
said, "You must go to town, you are here tired;
the King orders you.'7 As the Nayeb was up-stairs,
I called out, "Nayeb!" The rascal came down.
The hue of his complexion was quite black ; I almost
started at the sight. I asked him whether he knew
the King's order. He said, "Yes, and you must
obey." This absolute contradiction of his express
promise to protect me, even from the Ameer himself,
incensed me beyond bounds, and I said, " I now see
that the people are right, who say that you are the
cause that Colonel Stoddart and Captain Conolly
have been killed; you are a liar, a traitor, and a
rascal! you intend to kill me too." To this he
replied, "Yes, I have killed them; Stoddart quar-
relled with me and my brother, who is a Haje, in
my garden, about tillahs." I then said, " Liar ! why
did you always tell me that Stoddart and Conolly
have always been your friends ?" He replied, " I
know how to treat you Franks as you ought to be
treated." The Makhram again said that I must go
with him. I said, "No;" and saying this, I ran
out of the garden over a low part of the wall, when
Behadur followed me, and said, " Now I will let you
escape."

78 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

He brought me, first of all, to the garden belong-
ing to the Nayeb's son, Abdullah, which garden is
not yet quite finished, where, on a former occasion,
the Nayeb told me that he intended to construct a
fortress to defend himself in case of need against the
Ameer ; when, quite against all expectation, Ameer
Abool Kasem was brought to me by the Nayeb's
order. He informed me that he was the intended
Ambassador for England. [Note. I have forgotten
to mention above, that the Nayeb advised me, when
an Ambassador was first proposed, and the proposal
accepted, that I should administer poison to him pn
the road, which of course I rejected with horror.]
I said to Ameer Abool Kasem, " I know that the
Ameer intends to kill me ;" and as I had a little
paper and ink with me, I wrote a note to the Nayeb,
saying, "Now I knoiv that you are a traitor and a liar!
and that you will kill me as you have killed Stoddart
and Conolly ;" and I gave the note to Ameer Abool
Kasem, who gave it to the Nayeb.

Behadur then brought me, through a water-hole,
to the house of the Yawer (major), situated about
three hundred feet distance from the Nayeb's house,
whence Behadur and the Yawer promised to let me
escape that very evening. The evening approached,
when the Yawer came and said that the Ameer,
under the supposition that I had escaped, had sent
soldiers on all the different roads to pursue me ; it

fia

A\IBra)¥]L SiXMIUJT I&IHL&H

NAYEB OF THE AMEER OF BOKHARA.

G-T.Vu/ne.del?

t Claim

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 79

would be therefore better for me to stay there until
the troops of the Ameer had come back, and after
they had given up pursuing* me. He (the Yawer)
and Behadur would accompany me to Shahr Sabz,
Khoollom, and even as far as India. I told them
that I was convinced that the Nayeb was a traitor
and a liar, in whose words in future I should place
no reliance, and that I expected my fate with
patience and resignation.

Both Behadur and the Yawer went out of the
room, when a female, in the most coquettish manner,
and unveiled, entered it. I at once observed the
trap, and exclaimed, in a loud voice, and with great
apparent rage, "Go to hell!" The Yawer and
Behadur immediately entered, and asked what was
the matter ? I explained the whole. It wTas the same
trick which the rascally Nayeb tried to play to Stod-
dart and Conolly, for I heard from different people
that the same stratagem had been practised on them,
with a view to forcing them to become Muhammed-
ans, but in vain. To this he compels every slave he
takes, in order to sell the issue from them as slaves.

I slept at night in the house of the Yawer,
Behadur and Hussein Ali, both servants of the
Nayeb, near me, and when I told them that they
should sleep at a greater distance from me, they ob-
jected that the Nayeb had ordered them to do so
but I pushed them away by force.

80 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

The next morning, one of the King's head offi-
cers came and ordered me, in the name of the King,
to go to town, and that I should instantly receive
leave for my departure. I obeyed ; but previous
to this I was brought to the Nayeb, where the rascal
told me that he had given twenty tillahs to the head
officer, that he should treat me with respect, and
that I should get leave to depart after twenty days.

I left the horrid garden of that bloodhound, and
rode to the town. It was on a Friday. I was first
ordered to make my Salaam to the King 5 but was
not brought as usual previously to a decent room of
the palace, but was obliged to wait outside the gate
until the Ameer appeared, which he soon did. He
looked sternly at me, and evidently displeased. I
was then ordered by His Majesty to accompany the
Makhram, and two other guards, to my old quarters
in the Toora Khane, where now, also, Abbas Kouli
Khan was residing, and that I should not stir out of
the house without especial order from His Majesty.
I came to the Toora Khane, and occupied the same
room which Colonel Stoddart and Captain Conolly
had previous to their execution.

I called on Abbas Kouli Khan, who, fortunately,
lived in the same house, so that he did not come
under the prohibition, I considered, at least I was
determined not to understand the order in that
sense. He immediately told me, (i I swear to you,

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 81

by God and the Koran, that I will not leave Bokhara
without you." I told him that Nayeb Abdul Samut
Khan had told me that he had been ordered by
Muhammed Shah to effect my detention and death
at Bokhara. He in a most dignified manner denied
the charge, and produced his instruction from Haje
Mirza Agasee, Prime Minister to the King of Persia,
in which he was distinctly ordered to effect my
release from Bokhara.

Towards the evening, the Ameer sent to me the
following message : " There were people at Bokhara
from Khokand and Organtsh, whose inhabitants were
guilty of blood; and beside them, people from
Cabul, Cashmeer, and Hindustaun. None of them
had been molested by him. All of them enjoyed
his protection. He (His Majesty) therefore felt
greatly incensed that I had openly declared at
Bokhara that His Majesty's intention was to put
me to death; that His Majesty had been red
in his face from anger. He therefore now asked me
whether I would leave Bokhara without honour and
in disgrace, or with honour and filled with favour.
In the first case, His Majesty would furnish me with
a simple passport; in the second case, he would, after
his return from Samarcand, adorn me with a robe
of honour, and send an Ambassador with me to
England."

I sent as an answer that I repented having given
Vol. II. G

82 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

cause to His Majesty to be angry with me ; and with
respect to the mode of my going from Bokhara, I
left that entirely to His Majesty's choice.

The next day he set out for Samarcand with the
intention of reconquering Khokand and Tashkand.

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 83

CHAPTER XVII.

Jews obtain leave from the Ameer to visit Dr. Wolff ; they sing with
him, and ask for the Names of illustrious Jews who had embraced
Christianity; he tells them of several, vim., Emanuel Veith, M.D.,
Dr. Mayers, Dr. August Neander, Dr. Ratisbon, Isaac da Costa,
Dr. Kabbadose, Madame Dorothea Schlegel. Muhammed Bakher
Nakash, the Servant of Conolly, abjures Islam, and says the Chris-
tians are better Men than the Muhammedans ; he is brought before
the Sheikh Islam ; persists in his Avowal ; is sent to Prison, and
flogged. Ameer returns ; sends to Dr. Wolff a Mullah, to know
whether he will embrace the Muhammedan Religion ; Dr. Wolff
replies, Never. Executioner sent also. Letter from the Shah;
Haje Ibrahim, the Brother of Abdul Samut Khan, informs the
Nayeb of the Letter, and urges him to prevent Abbas Kouli Khan
from receiving it. Muhammed Bakher saved by Dr. Wolff.
Atrocities of Abdul Samut Khan; gets a Turkomaun beheaded,
who came to save Stoddart; also Ephraim, a Jew, from Meshed.
Prisoners in his Garden ; their Moanings and Wailings. Impression
throughout the Muhammedan Countries that England and Russia
will seize all those Regions. Remark to Dr. Wolff. Affghauns
praise the English. Habeeb, weeping, tells Dr. Wolff that he is
to die. Servants of Abdul Samut Khan announce his Death, and
show a Letter from Abdul Samut Khan to that effect. Dr. Wolff
makes up his mind to die, and writes in his Bible a Farewell to his
Family.

Previous to the departure of the Ameer for
Khokand, the Jews most kindly asked his leave to
visit me ; which was granted. They called on me,
and desired me to sing* a Hebrew melody, for they
said, " Your voice is sonorous and sweet." I sang
in a plaintive strain : "By the waters of Babylon
we sate down and wept, for we remembered Zion/'
&c.

G2

84 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

After this, we sang the Hymn of the Jews in
Turkistaun :

The King our Messiah shall come.

The Mighty of the Mighty is He.

The King, the King, the King our Messiah shall come.

The Blessed of the Blessed is He.

The King, the King, our Messiah.

The Great One of the Great is He.

The Jews here asked me whether there were any
Jews of distinction in our days who had embraced
Christianity. I replied, " Several ;" and they wished
to have their names, which they wrote down. I gave
them the following :

1st. Emanuel Veith, M.D., now Domprediger of the
Cathedral of St. Stephen's at Vienna.

2nd. Dr. Mayers, Professor of Jurisprudence at Tu-
bingen.

3rd. Dr. August Neander, at Berlin.

4th. Rev. Dr. Ratisbon, in France.

5 th. Isaac da Costa, in Amsterdam.

6th. Dr. Kabbadose, in Amsterdam.

7th. Madame Dorothea Schlegel.

I gave them the following history of them :
"Emanuel Veith was born in the year 1788, at
Klattau, in Bohemia, and studied regularly at the
university of Prague ; after this at Vienna. He distin-
guished himself so much in medicine, and especially
in the veterinary department and natural history,
that he received the office of Professor of Medicine

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 85

and Natural History, and Director of the Veterinary
Hospital at Vienna, when only twenty-four years of
age. He was the most popular physician at Vienna,
not only on account of his success, but also by
reason of his benevolence and philanthropy: when
suddenly he began to read the Bible, and the
writings of Saint Augustin and Jerome. He studied
theology, and is now the greatest divine and preacher
at Vienna. His Sermons on the Resurrection of
Lazarus; his Exposition of the Lord's Prayer; his
Journeys to the Holy Mountains ; his Eeligious
Tales; are considered masterpieces in the German
literature.

%i Dr. Mayers was born in the year 1798, in
Germany, and distinguished himself for his know-
ledge of the Talmud at the early age of seven. He
was born at Freudenthal, near Stuttgart, in Wirtem-
burg. He entered the Gymnasium of Stuttgart, and
previous to entering the University of Tubingen he
made a speech in Greek that astonished the learned.
He is now a pious Christian, and a celebrated
professor.

" Dr. August Neander is also of Jewish parents,
though Neologistic in views. He is evidently a
sincere and pious inquirer after truth. He is Pro-
fessor of Theology at Berlin. His Apostolical and
Ecclesiastial History are the productions of a mind
deeply imbued with spiritual religion.

86 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

"Ratisbon is a Roman Catholic priest, whose
Life of St Bernard has excited the greatest sensation
in France.

" Isaac da Costa springs from those Jews who
were what are called ' The Compelled/ c Anusim,' in
Spain, and is grand nephew to the famous Uriel da
Costa, Canon of Barcelona, who when he had left
Spain and reached Amsterdam, returned to Judaism,
which he embraced, and all his family, and after this
committed suicide. Isaac da Costa was educated as
a Jew at Amsterdam, but studied the law at Leyden,
and was converted, through the instrumentality of
Bilderdyk, to the Christian religion; and he was
instrumental to the conversion of his mother and
family to that faith ; and also of Dr. Kabbadose, in
the same manner as Uriel da Costa had converted
his family to the Jewish belief. Da Costa is a
celebrated writer, and a devoted admirer of the
spirit of the Middle Age, but a high Calvinist in his
views ; a man of powerful eloquence, and a poet.

" Dr. Kabbadose, the convert of Da Costa, spends
his days in acts of benevolence. I must here observe,
that it must be confessed that only those Jews that
have had a thorough education have approved them-
selves to be sincere Christians ; and it seems, there-
fore, highly desirable that the colleges in England
should be open to the Jews.

" Madame Dorothea Schlegel was the daughter of

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 87

the most celebrated philosopher of the Jewish nation,
Moses Mendelsohn. She married Veith, a Jewish
banker at Berlin. When Friederich Schlegel wrote
his celebrated book, Lucinde, Madame Veith replied
to it in a book called Florentine. She had two sons
of Veith, but was afterwards separated from Veith,
and married Schlegel. Both of them, Schlegel and
herself, became Roman Catholics at Cologne ; when
Schlegel became a mighty defender of the Middle
Age, and his wife a great admirer of the Spanish
literature. She translated several things from Spanish
into German ; without pretending to be a preacher,
she converted, through her conversation, many
Neologists to the Christian religion. Her two sons,
Johannes Veith and Philip Veith, also, were bap-
tized by Cardinal Severoli, the Pope's Nuncio at
Vienna. Both Johannes Veith and Philip Veith
are celebrated painters in Germany. I knew them
at Rome, where they enjoyed the highest esteem
among both Roman Catholics and Protestants for
their talents, genius, industry, and piety.

" I must not omit to record, also, of Philip Veith,
that in the war of Germany against Napoleon, he
and Theodor Korner, the well known poet, entered
as volunteers among the Prussians. He fought by
the side of the chivalric La Motte Fouqu6, in the
battle of Leipzic. When a Prussian corps was yield-
ing, Philip Veith called out, " Forward, comrades,"

88 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

cheered them to action, and conducted himself with
such gallantry and heroism, that Bliicher made him
an officer on the battle plain."

At this time Muhammed Bakher Nakash, i. e. the
Painter, formerly in the service of Conolly, loudly
exclaimed in a bath, " The Frankee are by far better
than the Mussulmauns. Muhammed was no pro-
phet. He was a cruel tyrant, and thus are all his
followers. There is one God, but no prophet does
exist." He was brought before the Sheikh Islam,
and questioned about his public declaration.

Sheikh al-hlam (to Muhammed Bakher). Is it
true that you have made such a declaration ?

Muhammed Bakher. Yes! I have loudly pro-
claimed that there is no Prophet.

Sh. Do you believe, perhaps, that Jesus is a pro-
phet?

M. B. No.

Sh. Mullah Youssuf Wolff does not agree with
yoiij for he believes that Jesus is not only a prophet,
but he calls him also the Son of God.

M. B. I believe no prophet ; but Jesus was a
better man than Muhammed, and the followers of
Jesus are better than the followers of Muhammed.

Muhammed Bakher was then sent to prison and
flogged, but without any use. The mullahs then
sent off an express courier to the Ameer, who was
at that time at Samarcand; but he ordered them

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 89

not to put him to death until he came back. On
the return of the Ameer, he sent, as my readers will
see in the next chapter, a mullah to me, to know
whether I would become a Muhammedan ; and an
executioner to threaten me with death.

But the letter of the King of Persia had arrived,
which was written and sent at the request of
Colonel Sheil, to the care of the Assaff-ood-Dowla
at Meshed, who delivered it to my friend Mullah
Mehdee, who with the greatest secrecy delivered it
into the hands of a Turkomaun for Abbas Kouli
Khan at Bokhara. Most providential it was that
Haje Ibrahim, brother of Abdul Samut Khan, was
not at Meshed at the time, for on his return to
Meshed he learned that Mullah Mehdee had sent
off a letter from the Shah to the Ameer. He in
a rage ran to Mullah Mehdee, and said to him,
" Why did you send away the letter from the King
of Persia to the Ameer of Bokhara? and why
did you not give the letter to me, when I would
have forwarded the letter to my brother, Abdul
Samut Khan, who would have delivered it himself
to the King ?" Now that this fact is true is clear,
for Behadur, Abdul Samut Khan's servant above
mentioned, told me that he had seen a letter from
Haje Ibrahim, in which Haje Ibrahim wrote to
Abdul Samut Khan by an express messenger the
following words : " That cursed Jew, Mullah Meh-

90 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

dee, has sent off a letter from the Shah to the Ameer,
to be delivered by Abbas Kouli Khan. I was not at
Meshed at the time, and therefore could not inter-
cept the letter. Do all you can, dear brother, to
prevent the letter coming into the hands of Abbas
Kouli Khan, for if it reach him you will not succeed
in keeping the Frankee, and on his arrival in Eng-
land he will confound us all."

That this statement of Behadur is true, is certain
from the following circumstance: that on my arrival
at Meshed, Mullah Mehdee himself told me the
instant he saw me that Haje Ibrahim was absent
from Meshed at the time, and was highly incensed
with him for sending off the letter. This letter also
deterred the King from doing anything to Muham-
med Bakher, as he was the servant to Conolly, and
gave me liberty from captivity, and the King ob-
served at the same time : "No harm must be done
to Muhammed Bakher, for Joseph Wolff is more
than a mere derveesh."

I must now give, in addition to the above, a few
more examples of the atrocities committed by that
villain, Abdul Samut Khan, testified to me by that
respectable person Khoja Saheb of Cashmeer, and
others. A Turkomaun came to Bokhara for the
purpose of saving Stoddart. Abdul Samut Khan
was informed of it, and he immediately gave notice
of the attempt to the Ameer, who instantly ordered
the TurkomamVs head to be struck off.

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 91

Ephraim, a Jew from Meshed, also arrived to
assist Stoddart, when that villain also informed the
King of it, and the poor Jew was also beheaded.
Whenever I was in the garden of that villain, he
brought me on purpose near the place where he had
his prisoners, and I heard the moanings and wailings
of those who sighed in prison. He, well pleased
with himself, said to me : " Youssnf Wolff, do you
observe what power I have? The Ameer inflicts
upon criminals only seventy-five stripes ; but I two
thousand stripes."

There is the impression, from the Dardanelles to
the Oxus, and from thence to the utmost boundaries
of Tibet, that England and Russia shall be the con-
querors of the world, and the people are not dissa-
tisfied with it, but, on the contrary, wish that that
event may soon take place.

One of the people of Bokhara paid a visit to Dil
Assa Khan ; on his leaving him he saw me walking
about, near my room. He looked at me and said :
" This Englishman in his mullah's dress is only the
forerunner of great events ; not without reason has
he appeared here with the Books of the Christians
open, placed at his heart ; this is a sign that very
soon the Christian Powers shall set at defiance the
whole of Islam, and Jesus shall be King over all the
world for the space of forty years, and Dujaal (Anti-
christ) shall come."

02 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

An Affghaun sat down in the evening near my
room, and said: " I am well acquainted with the mode
of Government in India ; every Englishman in India
is a king, and therefore they will not be satisfied
with Hindustaun alone, but their rule will be spread
all over China ; and Russia will soon be in posses-
sion of the city of Turkistaun, Khokand, and Or-
gantsh;" and by a hint directed towards me, he
indicated also the kingdom of Bokhara.

Another said, " I always told the people of Aff-
ghanistaun, c Do not rise against the English people,
for the English people have wings, and if you drive
them out now, they will soon come again.' "

Another observed: "Russia and England are
two great rival powers. A certain Vicovich was
sent from Russia to Dost Muhammed Khan, but he
soon was recalled, and he died by suicide."

Habeeb, one of the guards who watched me,
came one day weeping in my room, and said:
" Curses, thousand curses to Abdul Samut Khan ; he
has at last succeeded in inducing the King to send
an order here to put you to death immediately on his
return." Scarcely had he done, when servants of
Abdul Samut Khan entered my room and showed to
me actually a letter from Abdul Samut Khan to one
of his officers, writing to him : " Hasrat n (His
Majesty) "has at last decided to put to death the
Englishman, and nothing will save the man! Let

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 93

him go to the devil ; what business had he to come
to Bokhara ?" I looked at the seal, and it was the
seal of Abdul Samut ; I wrote therefore in my Bible
these words :

My dearest Georgiana and Henry,

I have loved both of you unto death.

Your affectionate husband and father,

Joseph Wolff.

94 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

CHAPTER XVIII.

Colonel Sheil. Bad Conduct of Dr. Wolff's Servants. Remark of
Usbecks on the Treatment of Dr. Wolff. Questions put by the
Makhrams by order of the King to Dr. Wolff. Kindness of Abbas
Kouli Khan to Dr. Wolff; the noblest-minded Persian Dr. Wolff has
seen ; sends Dr. Wolff Food .from his own Table ; places a Servant
with Dr. Wolff for his personal Safety ; sends his Physician to Dr.
Wolff to treat him for the Rishta. Abbas Kouli Khan and Dr. Wolff
read together. Various Reports of the Ameer's Proceedings. Abbas
Kouli Khan's Religious Opinions. Conversation with People of
Samarcand; they tell Dr. Wolff of Gold Mines and Turquoises near
Samarcand; of Ghengis Khan and Tamerlane. Letter of Abbas
Kouli Khan to Lady Georgiana. Nayeb sends two thousand tillahs
to Dr. Wolff. The Letter of Lord Ellenborough reported to be at
Balkh ; arrives in forty days ; Seal broken. Abdul Samut Khan
leaves Bokhara for Samarcand; his Message to Dr. Wolff. Vile
Conduct of Abdullah ; tries to rob Dr. Wolff. Dr. Wolff wishes
the Jews to take charge of Abdul Samut Khan's Money; they
decline it, on the ground that Abdul Samut Khan would take it
from them, and make them pay for it. Letters arrive at Bokhara
from the Brother of Conolly ; Dr. Wolff opens them. Abbas Kouli
Khan's continued Kindness to Dr. Wolff. The Jews visit Dr.
Wolff; their curious method of Conversation. Dr. Wolff writes to
the " Sovereigns of Europe." A second Letter, with strict Instruc-
tions about Dr. Wolff's Safety, arrives from the Shah. Letter to
Captain Grover. Return of the Ameer and Abdul Samut Khan to
Bokhara. King reads Lord Ellenborough's Letter; determines in
his own mind, Abdul Samut Khan says, to kill Dr. Wolff. Others
say that Abdul Samut Khan advised him to do so. Abbas Kouli
Khan, Dil Assa Khan, and Dr. Wolff, visit the Ameer; he does not
look on Dr. Wolff. Letter to Lady Georgiana and his Son. All
Letters sent open by Dr. Wolff. Mullah sent to Dr. Wolff to know
if he would embrace Muhammedanism ; he replies, Never. Execu-
tioner visits him. Dr. Wolff prepares for Death. Abbas Kouli
Khan intimates to the Ameer that he has a Letter to deliver from
the Shah. The Ameer receives it, and gives Dr. Wolff up to him.

It seems to me that both Colonel Sheil and the
Foreign Office at home, have been deceived in the

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 95

character of that bloodhound , Abdul Samut Khan,
and though I am sorry to say anything* to the dis-
paragement of Colonel Sheil, on account of the hos-
pitality shown to me, and the prompt assistance he
gave to me, by forwarding the letter of the King of
Persia to Bokhara, yet I must say that it appeared
to me that Colonel Sheil seemed to be unwilling to
be undeceived respecting the real character of Abdul
Samut Khan ; though my description of the character
of that infamous villain was confirmed by Abbas
Kouli Khan, and is further confirmed by every
Persian who has been at Bokhara, and I perceive
the infamy of that miscreant is well known to Mon-
sieur de Bode and to Sir Claude Martin Wade.

On another day, my servant Abdullah entered
my room in a furious way, and said : " Now they
are going to kill you, and what shall I do here ? I
have no money for going back. Give me a letter to
the Ambassador of your nation at Teheraun to make
me a present of two thousand tillahs ; if not, I will
kill you now. If you do so before the Ameer sends
this order, I will get some Khoja (saint) to speak in
your behalf." I took a stick and gave him such a
beating as I never gave to any one ; and I turned
him out of the room, and out of my service ; but
Abbas Kouli Khan besought me to keep him again,
as it would not be safe at Bokhara to suffer him to
run about and excite, perhaps, the populace against

96 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

me. So I took him again, which made him only
more impertinent; and the villain Abdul Samut
Khan encouraged him in it, and sent me word that
I should give him a sum of money, in order that he
might not play the Haramzadeh, i. e. the traitor.
However, I must not go into details of what I suf-
fered at Bokhara by that villain Abdul Samut Khan,
and my servant Abdullah. I only can say that I
frequently wished that the King of Bokhara would
not delay my execution, in order to have peace for
ever ; and I must say, that it was an inconsiderate
act of Colonel Sheil to send to me a demand for
money from that villain from Bokhara to England;
for by the items, he (Colonel Sheil) ought to have
seen that the promise was extorted from a poor pri-
soner who had death before his eyes.

I was very ill one morning ; — on awaking from
sleep, Abdullah screamed : "I have committed a
great error by coming to Bokhara with an infidel."
I said: "Do you not perceive that I am very
unwell ? " Abdullah, in a most malicious manner,
replied : " Then be well. All the same to me."

Usbecks from Bokhara who were present, and the
guards of the King observed, " They try to kill this
poor Englishman by annoying him ;" and another
observed, "It is all at the advice of that villain
Abdul Samut Khan, who wishes to bring our Ameer
into difficulties with the English, and the villain

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 97

would like to see Bokhara destroyed, and he himself
gain by it."

On another day I got a message from the King.
His Majesty wished to know whether the English
people could make a bridge over the Oxus? I
replied, "Yes, with very great ease." He immedi-
ately sent another Makhram with the question, "How
many cannons have the English ? " I replied, that
I never counted them ; but I was sure that they
must have several thousand pieces of artillery. A
third Makhram was sent the same day, with the
question, In how many days a caravan of camels
would arrive in England ? I replied, " No caravan
of camels could proceed to England ; such a thing is
not seen in England."

The kindness I experienced from Abbas Kouli
Khan at this trying period, when so many evils beset
my path, and my life was on the brink of destruction,
I must ever remember with the deepest gratitude,
though he was by no means without apprehension
for his own fate, but laboured, as all at Bokhara
must, under terrible misgivings of his own personal
safety. Abbas Kouli Khan was formerly Governor
at Bushire, in the Persian Gulf, and therefore
acquainted with English people. He was a man of
a higher sense of honour than I had ever met among
the Persians. When he perceived that I could not
eat horseflesh, and tea with salt and milk, and besides

Vol. II. H

98 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

this, rice only half boiled, he sent me daily a pilaw of
his own cooked in the Persian style ; and as he per-
ceived that I was in danger of being murdered by
the guards set over me by the King, or by Abdullah
my servant, or Dil Assa Khan, he sent one of his own
servants to sleep in my apartment j and as he soon
saw that I had an attack of the " Rishta," he sent
one of his own physicians to bleed me.

I also was enabled to go every day to him, when
we read together some of the Persian works, as
Scandername, which details the adventures of Alexan-
der, and Tabari, a book which I afterwards received
as a present from the King. I heard, also, in his
company, several contradictory reports from the
camp of the King ; for instance, one day the news
came that the Ameer had arrived at the gates of
Khokand, and that the Cazi, Mufti, and others, had
come forth to bring him the keys. Another day
that the Ameer had, out of mercy to the inhabitants
of Khokand, retired with his army, but the fact was,
that he was beaten, and had lost twelve Generals or
Serkerdeha.

I also had with Abbas Kouli Khan many conver-
sations on religion. His belief was, that the whole
world would become Christians, and that Christ
would govern forty days upon earth. After this,
that Antichrist would appear, when all the world
would become Mussulmans.

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 99

Whilst I was with Abbas Kouli Khan, there
came people from Samarcand, who talked to me
about the Turquoises and gold mines which the
Ameer of Bokhara had near Samarcand. They also
conversed about Tamerlane, as though he were dead
but yesterday. I heard, also, that Ghengis Khan
had a Jew from Germany as his Secretary. They
preferred in general Tamerlane to Ghengis Khan,
for they say of Ghengis Khan that he knew how to
conquer a world — that he was a Jehaan-Geer, a
world-taker ; but Tamerlane was not only a Jehaan-
Geer, but also a Jehaan-Dar, a world-holder.

To instance the kindness of Abbas Kouli Khan, I
need small proof. The following letter will alone
supply ample evidence of his kindly heart*. It is
addressed to Lady Georgiana.

In the Name of the Highest !

I acquaint the exalted and virtuous lady, my kind
and distinguished sister, the respected lady of the high in
rank, the distinguished among the learned persons of the
Christian Faith, the Reverend Joseph Wolff, that on my
arrival at Bokhara, my distinguished friend was much
grieved and his affairs were in a confused state. I brought
him to my own place of residence, and I waited twice on
His Highness the Ameer of Bokhara on his account, and I
obtained permission for him to depart agreeably to the com-
mands of His Majesty, my Sovereign, on whom the regard of

* This letter was kindly translated into English by Mr. Thomson at
Teheraun.

H2

100 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

the universe is fixed, — may the whole world be his sacri-
fice,— and agreeably to the orders of His Excellency, &c. &c,
my Lord the Haje, (Prime Minister of Persia,) — may his
great shadow be increased, — that I should bring him along
with me. His Highness the Ameer of Bokhara having had
to undertake a two months' journey against Khokand, it was
impossible for me to despatch him on his journey until the
return of the Ameer. Again, a second Firman from His
Majesty (the Shah) to the Ameer of Bokhara arrived, which I
caused to be delivered in a suitable manner, and I did all that
was incumbent on me in regard to the friendship subsisting
between the two powerful Governments of Persia and Eng-
land. I obtained leave for him to depart by one means or
another. In eight days more, I shall bring him along with
me in safety and health. Rest assured.

I have no ends in view or expectations in this. I did it
in the service of my own Government, and on account of the
friendship subsisting between the two Governments. I am
the brother of my distinguished friend Joseph "Wolff. I am
also your brother, O virtuous Lady, and you are my sister.
I have written these few words at the request of my brother,
and I present my compliments.
1 Bokhara, 6th Rejjeb, 1260 (23rd July, 1844).

Soon after the King's departure for Khokand the
Nayeb sent to me the two thousand tillahs which he
had made me promise to take on with me to Tehe-
raun, in order to deliver to Colonel Sheil, for the
purpose of receiving twenty per cent, for the impor-
tant services he had rendered to England ; and which
money, he gave me to understand, was a pledge to
me that he was in earnest to procure speedily my
release. The next day, however, he sent again for

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 101

the money without a written order, and said that
Mango, the Hindoo merchant, might give me bills
for them, or any Jewish merchant at Bokhara.
I sent him word that he should first send me back
my note, and at the same time a written order to
whom I should deliver the money; to which the
Nayeb gave me no reply. He then sent to me Mor-
tesa, the Kafila Bashi from Heraut, giving me to
understand that he (Abdul Samut Khan) had kept
Mortesa on purpose here, in order that he might
enable me to escape concealed in a large trunk, in
case that the Ameer should not give me permission
to depart.

At last, forty days after the time at which it was
pretended that the messenger was sent to Balkh for
Lord Ellenborough's letter, the letter, as they said,
arrived from Balkh, which might have been back
easily in six days from the time the alleged messenger
went to Balkh. Abdul Samut Khan sent the letter
for my inspection. The seal was broken in two,
which the Nayeb said happened on the road by the
messenger having fallen from his horse. After the
letter had arrived, Abdul Samut Khan set out for
Samarcand, to join the King, accompanied by two
hundred disciplined troops, and four pieces of can-
non. The day of his departure he sent to me Beha-
dur, his servant, telling me that I ought to give
Abdullah a present of one hundred tillahs, in order

102 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

that he might not commit Haramzadekee, i. e. ras-
cality and treachery; I gave him, however, only
twenty. Abdullah became worse and worse every
day, and in the night time I observed that he tried
to rob me of the money, in order, as I was after-
wards assured of by trustworthy people, to hand it
back to the Nayeb, and after this to murder me,
either at Bokhara by poison, or on the road in any
way he could ; and he (Abdul Samut Khan) having
my note of hand for it, would then have come upon
the British Government for the money, so that he
wTould have been twice paid, exactly as he did with
Captain Conolly. For this reason, also, Mortesa,
the Kafila Bashi, was detained at Bokhara. I, in
order to rid myself of the burden, wished a respect-
able Jew at Bokhara to take the money, and give
me a bill on Meshed; but Meshiakh, and Mullah
Simha, and Pinehas, (these were the names of the
Jews to whom I applied,) told me that they were
acquainted with Abdul Samut Khan's conduct to-
wards Conolly and Stoddart. Should that rascal,
they said, find out that I had delivered the money
into the hands of the Jews, he would force them,
after my departure, to deliver the money over
to him : they therefore declined accepting the
money.

Two letters, by the hands of two different people,
arrived from the brother of Conolly, addressed to

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 103

Conolly, wishing to know whether he and Stoddart
were alive or dead. I opened the letters, gave
several ducats to the bearers, and in order to induce
them to depart quickly, I informed them that I had
told the King that letters had reached me from
India, which induced them to start immediately for
Balkh and Cabul.

What I suffered all the time of the King's absence
I cannot describe. The good Abbas Kouli Khan
sent me victuals constantly from Jus table, in order
that I might not be poisoned by Abdullah. In the
night time he took possession of the key of my room,
in order that I might not be murdered, and kept his
servant in my room to protect me, as I have men-
tioned. Every moment a spy from the King came to
ask me what I did. The Jews, however, had the
courage to come, and I advised them to come when
the King's Makhrams were with me ; when each of
us looked in a Hebrew Bible, as if we were reading,
and thus carried on our conversation in Hebrew in
the presence of the Usbecks, who all the time be-
lieved that we were reading in the book by turn,
whilst I learnt every particular of the conduct of
the King and the Nayeb towards Stoddart and
Conolly, particulars of the death of the latter, and
of the licentious and tyrannical conduct of the
King. Conversations not political we carried on
in Persian.

104 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

At this period I wrote and sent from Bokhara
the following letter :

To all the Monarchs of Europe.
Sires ! Bokhara, 1844.

I set out for Bokhara to ransom the lives of two
officers, Colonel Stoddart and Captain Conolly ; but both of
them were murdered many months previous to my departure,
and I do not know whether this blood of mine will not be
spilt.

I do not supplicate for my own safety ; but, Monarchs,
two hundred thousand Persian slaves, many of them people
of high talent, sigh m the kingdom of Bokhara. Endeavour
to effect their liberation, and I shall rejoice in the grave that
my blood has been thus the cause of the ransom of so many
human beings. I am too much agitated, and too closely
watched, to be able to say more.

Joseph Wolff.

During the absence of the King a second letter
arrived from His Majesty the King of Persia to the
King of Bokhara, at the solicitation of Colonel Sheil,
which letter was delivered to Abbas Kouli Khan;
he immediately showed the letter to me. His Ma-
jesty the King of Persia had written : " The greatest
friendship subsists between England and Persia ; and
therefore, if you do not send back Joseph Wolff with
Abbas Kouli Khan, I shall become enraged with you."

At this period also I wrote the following letter to
Captain Grover:

Dear Friend ! Bokhara, June, 1844.

I have now been already two months in this place,

and though five or six times the King has promised to send

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 105

me instantly to England, with one of his own ambassadors, I
am in the greatest danger. I cannot stir out of the house
without a guard of three men.

Dil Assa Khan, the fellow sent with me by the Assaff-ood-
Dowla, has shamefully robbed, deceived, and outraged me.
The Persian ambassador, Abbas Kouli Khan, is kind to me,
but I think he will not have it in his power to rescue me.
The Nayeb, Abdul Samut Khan, has extorted from me a
writing to pay him five thousand tomauns to effect my
liberation. I suspect that he was the cause of Stoddart and
Conolly's death, in spite of his continued protestations of
friendship.

Pray console my dear wife and child as much as you can.
I love them dearly. The* Ameer is now at Samarcand, and
I am here awaiting the most fatal orders from the King
daily to reach me. It is true that poor Stoddart openly
professed Christianity after he had made a forced profession
of Muhammedanism. Do for me what you can, as far as the
honour of England is not compromised. All the inhabitants
wish that either Russia or England should take the country.

Yours affectionately,

Joseph Wolff.

P.S. Do not believe any reports of my speedy depar-
ture, for I am in great danger.

Forty or fifty days (for I lost all certainty of
date) after the King's departure, the King and Ab-
dul Samut Khan returned to Bokhara. My servant
Abdullah, immediately, without asking leave of me,
ran to the Nayeb, who sent me word by him, as also
by Mirza Abdul Wehab, that the King had said,
after he had perused Lord Ellenborough's letter:
"Now it is proper that I should kill Joseph Wolff."

106 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

But I was informed by others who were present
when the King had read the letter, that the Nayeb
said to the King, "Now it is proper that Your
Majesty should kill Joseph Wolff, as the Governor-
General tries to frighten Your Majesty." A fort-
night before the King's arrival, Abdul Samut Khan
had written to me from the camp, that His Majesty
had been well pleased with the letter, and had said
that he would soon send me to my country. Abbas
Kouli Khan, Dil Assa Khan, and myself, went to
meet the King near the palace ; he looked away
from me. The crowd observed, " It will not go well
with that Englishman."

In this hour of deep distress and despondency,
I sent through Sir Charles Napier, vid India, the
following letter :

My dearest Wife and Child,

Never, never, never for a moment lose your love and
obedience and faith in Jesus Christ; and pray for me, that I
may remain faithful to Him in the hour of trial. Entreat the
Churches in England to pray for me to our most blessed
Redeemer, Jesus Christ. Give my regards to all my friends.
Your most loving husband and father,

Joseph Wolff.

I sent all letters from Bokhara open, even that
to the Sovereigns of Europe ; and this latter letter
was forwarded by the King himself. Had they been
able to read them, no doubt I should have died.

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 107

The day following', a mullah came, and asked
me, in His Majesty's name, whether I would turn
Mussulman. I replied, " Tell the King, never —
never — never!" He asked me, "Have you not a
more polite answer for the King ?" I said, " I beg
you to tell His Majesty, that you asked me whe-
ther I had not a more polite answer for His Majesty,
and I said, c Decidedly not.' "

A few hours after the executioner came, — the
same who had put to death Stoddart and Conolly, —
and said, " Joseph Wolff, to thee it shall happen as
it did to Stoddart and Conolly," and made a sign at
my throat with his hand. I prepared for death, and
carried opium about with me, that, in case my throat
should be cut, I might not feel the pain. However,
at last I cast away the opium, and prayed, and wrote
in my Bible these words :

My dearest Greorgiana and Henry,

I have loved both of you unto death.

Your affectionate husband and father,
Bokhara, 1844. J. WOLFF.

But that very same day, Abbas Kouli Khan sent
word to the Ameer, that he had received a letter
for His Majesty from Muhammed Shah. The Ameer
sent word that Abbas Kouli Khan should send the
letter by the Shekhawl; but Abbas Kouli Khan
replied, that he had received orders from his court
to deliver the letter in person. The Ameer sent

108 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

word again that he should send the letter, but Abbas
Kouli Khan protested against it, when His Majesty
at last consented to his coming to the palace. Abbas
Kouli Khan delivered the letter to the Ameer; after
having perused it ho said, " Well, I make a present
to you of Joseph Wolff; he may go with you."

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 100

CHAPTER XIX.

Ameer sends for the Servants of Abbas Kouli Khan and Dil Assa Khan,
but omits Dr. Wolffs by mistake, to give them Robes of Honour.
Interview with the Nayeb. Presents from the King. The Ameer
tells Dr. Wolff to ask a Favour of him ; Dr. Wolff declines doing
so. Ameer determines to send an Ambassador to England. Vile
Conduct of Abdul Samut Khan. Audience of leave to depart.
Ameer commends the Conduct of Dr. Wolff; censures that of
Stoddart and Conolly. Reception in Bokhara by the People.
Murders committed by Abdul Samut Khan. First Plan by which
the Ameer might be effectually checked in his Atrocities. Second
Plan for same. English Honour requires some Notice to be taken
of the Ameer's Conduct. Character of the Ameer; brutal, lustful,
tyrannical, but not so to the Poor ; fond of Information ; deeply
affected at having put to death Stoddart and Conolly. Dr. Wolff
prefers Ameer to Abdul Samut Khan. Description of Bokhara by
Mr. Macgregor. Population of Khiva. Trade of those Countries.
Russian Trade. Dignitaries of the State. Ecclesiastical Dignitaries.

The day after the presentation of the Shah's letter,
the Ameer sent for Abbas Kouli Khan's and Dil
Assa Khan's servants, to ask them the ordinary
questions before the robes of honour are distributed,
but he did not send for mine. Abbas Kouli Khan
was frightened, and said, " Do not stir out of my
room ; if they want to detain you, I will defend you
with my sword !" However, my servant was omitted
by mere mistake, and soon sent after.

I then was ordered to go to the Nayeb by order
of the King. The rascal told me shortly, "Theft
are no Russian slaves for you ; I give you one thou-

110 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

sand tillahs more, which you will deliver with the
other two thousand, and three thousand tillahs you
have to give me for my trouble, including a present
of eight hundred tillahs to my son Abdullah Khan ;
and the two thousand two hundred tillahs I have
spent for you among His Majesty's officers. You
must therefore give me now a note of hand for six
thousand tillahs.

W. Give me back my other notes of hand !

He did so, which I tore instantly to pieces.

Abdul S. Khan. Why do you tear them before
you have written the other ?

TV. " I will write you now another." I wrote
thus:

In the garden of the infamous Nayeb, Abdul Samut

Khan, surrounded by his banditti, and compelled by him, I

write that he forced from me a note of hand for six thousand

tillahs.

Joseph Wolff, Prisoner.

I desired him to give me back also my letter of
his good services to me, that I might write another.
This he would not do. Abbas Kouli Khan had sent
his servant after me, afraid lest something might
happen to me there. I therefore returned imme-
diately to the Toora Khane. At last I was called
down to the room of Abbas Kouli Khan, when ninety
tillahs were given to me from the King, as a present ;
a horse with a silver saddle, and a shawl. Dil Assa

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. Ill

Khan received only forty-five tillahs, but neither
shawl nor horse ; and the Shekhawl then turned to
Abbas Kouli Khan and said : " His Majesty had first
intended to send an Ambassador with Joseph Wolff
to England, but as he had brought no letters from
the British Government, he has renounced this idea,
especially as he goes with you ; and you and he can
explain to Muhammed Shah and in England the
reason of the death of Colonel Stoddart and Cap-
tain Conolly."

A few days after the presents of the King were
delivered, suddenly a Makhram entered my room with
a Persian Manuscript, called Tawareekh Tabbaree, as
a present from the King to me; and His Majesty
requested me to ask a favour. I replied, that His
Majesty's bounty, especially in sending me away in
such an honourable manner, was so great, that I had
no other favour to ask. I only begged His Majesty
to add his seal to the book, which he did, and then
sent me word that he was, after all, determined to
send Ameer Abool Kasem, his chief Makhram, as
Ambassador with me to England. I replied, that His
Majesty might do what he pleased, but as His Ma-
jesty sent one to Muhammed Shah, there was no
necessity for it. The Ameer sent a Makhram to
Abbas Kouli Khan, to ask what the necessary ex-
pense of an Ambassador to England might be.
Abbas Kouli Khan, who wished to dissuade the

112 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

Ameer from this, replied, Two hundred thousand
tillahs. However, the Ameer was determined now
upon sending an Ambassador, for the assassin Abdul
Samut Khan had told him that if he did not send
an Ambassador with me, Abbas Kouli Khan would
have the credit of having effected my release, and,
beside this, he (Abdul Samut Khan) had borrowed
for me from merchants three thousand tillahs, with
which I might easily defray the expense of an
Ambassador to England, whilst at the same time
he made my servant Abdullah, Mortesa, Abbas, and
others, promise to poison the Ambassador on the
road, for he well knew that on his return the Am-
bassador would expose his villany from my informa-
tion, and the authority of my Government possibly,
if his credentials were received.

Abbas Kouli Khan and myself were then called
up to the Ameer. I was allowed to ride on horse-
back with Abbas Kouli Khan through the gates,
whilst Dil Assa Khan was ordered to remain behind.
We appeared before the King. He said to me:
" I send with you Ameer Abool Kasem, to accom-
pany you to England. Stoddart and Conolly excited
Khokand and Organtsh to war, and therefore were
put to death. You, Joseph Wolff, proved yourself
to be a man of understanding and knowledge, and
therefore I treated you with honour."

W. Europeans frequently come to a country

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 113

without knowing the customs of it, and make, there-
fore, mistakes which they do not intend.

We then left Bokhara the day following, amidst
thousands of congratulating inhabitants, who called
my liberation " A new birth !" I succeeded in
taking with me four slaves ; but Abbas Kouli Khan
bought with his own money twenty slaves, whom he
ransomed, and took with him one thousand of those
who had previously bought their liberty.

The following people have been killed at Bo-
khara, at the instigation of Abdul Samut Khan :

1. Youssuf Khan, from Scio.

2. Colonel Stoddart.

3. Captain Conolly.

4. A Turkomaun from Merwe, sent to Bokhara to assist
in the escape of Colonel Stoddart.

5. Ephraim, a Jew from Meshed, who brought letters
for Conolly.

6. An Englishman, who passed by the name of Hatta.

7. Captain Wyburd.

8. Five Englishmen, executed outside the town of
Jehaar-Joo.

9. Naselli.

The Grand Cazi, his servant Molam Beyk, Mah-
som, Khoja Saheb from Cashmeer, Ushur Beyk,
Saadat, several merchants from Persia, and Abdul
Samut Khan's own servants, accuse him as the mur-
derer ; nor does he deny the perpetration of these
atrocities himself
Vol. II. I

114 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

Haje Ismael, a merchant, left Bokhara with
me. He had been long' in Yarkand and Kashgar.
He told me that several Englishmen had arrived
at Yarkand, who escaped from the disaster at
Cabul. They were well treated, but not allowed
to leave the place. If the Ameer had permitted
me to proceed via Yarkand and Russia, I cer-
tainly wonld have taken that road. Haje Ismael
also informed me that they have at Kashgar,
Yarkand, and throughout Chinese Tartary, beacons
of fire, by which they are informed of the departure
and approach of caravans from an immense dis-
tance.

The question may here, after the detail of these
atrocities, be asked, Is there no way of punishing the
King of Bokhara, and ought it to be done, and what
advantages may accrue from punishing him, and
what disadvantages from not punishing him ?

Now first, Is there no way of punishing him ?
There are several ways of punishing him, and this
most surely. The first, and the most straightfor-
ward, would be by sending an army from Scinde
through Candahar, and from Candahar through
Maymona, to Bokhara. On that road there would
be villages upon villages, and provisions and water
enough, and in order to induce Kohandel Khan, the
Ameer of Candahar, not to lay any hindrance in the
way, they should allow him to take possession of

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 115

Ankhoy, which place is governed by a Khan, but
one who is tributary to the King of Bokhara, a
robber and slave-maker ; and Kohandel Khan ought
to be made to promise to the British army, that after
his taking Ankhoy, he would give liberty to the Per-
sian slaves residing at Ankhoy. Dost Muhammed
Khan ought to be allowed to send an army to
Khoolom and Balkh, whilst all the time the British
army should march from Ankhoy to Karkee, where
they must cross the Oxus, for which reason they ought
to take a good deal of timber with them, in order to
be able to make a flying bridge. A few shots of
artillery from the part of the English army will put
to flight the whole host of Usbecks. Having once
crossed the Oxus, they should issue proclamations to
all the inhabitants of Bokhara, saying that nothing
should be done to them in case they delivered up,
alive or dead, the Ameer of Bokhara, and his Nayeb
Abdul Samut Khan, which I am sure would be
instantly done. The British army then should pro-
claim the Ameer's son the rightful successor to the
throne, which would pacify the whole nation; but
the Persian slaves, two hundred thousand in number,
ought to be made free, which would give popularity
to the English nation all over Persia, Khokand,
Tashkand, and Yarkand. The name of Sir Charles
Napier, Governor of Scinde, which lias already
struck terror all over Affghanistaun, Belocchistaun,

12

116 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

Bokhara, Khiva, and Khokand, would supply twenty
thousand men ; for he is called now at Bokhara,
the Rustam of Dowlat, which means the Giant of
England.

The other plan of marching towards Bokhara
will be to allow Persia to take permanent possession
of Sarakhs and Mowr, and thus for ever put a stop
to the depredations of the Turkomauns of Mowr,
and also to take Jehaar-Joo, a frontier city of Bo-
khara this side of the Oxus ; and then allow them
to march towards Bokhara in order to liberate the
Persian slaves there, but on condition that the
Persian army should evacuate Bokhara after having
taken prisoner the Ameer, his Nayeb, Abdul Samut
Khan, and placed on the throne the Ameer's son.
It should march back by Maymona and Ankhoy, in
order to liberate the slaves there, and thus return
triumphantly to Persia, enriched by thousands of
Persian subjects, and the additional possession of
Mowr and Jehaar- Joo. In order that the expedition
of the Persian army might be crowned with success,
and that, at the same time, the inhabitants of Bo-
khara and all the countries around should be con-
vinced that that expedition was undertaken at the
instigation of the British Government, some regi-
ments of British soldiers ought to be sent with it.
The advantage of punishing the King of Bokhara,
either from the side of Scinde, or with the assistance

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 117

of Persia, would be this : First, that such an occur-
rence as the murder of two British Officers would
not be repeated, either at Bokhara, or in any other
adjacent countries; and European travellers might
then with more ease go there and pursue their
researches in those interesting countries; and the
light of the Gospel might then with more ease be
spread all over Bokhara, Khokand, &c; and Persian
slaves at Bokhara, with those of Ankhoy and May-
mona included, amounting in the whole to the
number of two hundred and fifty thousand, be set
at liberty ; and the name of Englishmen would be
blessed even by the Usbecks themselves for having
delivered them, from the hands of two bloodthirsty
tyrants, the Ameer, and his Nayeb, Abdul Samut
Khan. Should England, however, not take any
further notice of the atrocious murder committed by
the Ameer at the instigation of the Nayeb, Abdul
Samut Khan, our country will lose all the moral
influence it now possesses in these countries; and
Khiva and Khokand, where such a crime has not
yet been committed, may follow the example of their
enemy the Ameer of Bokhara, in order to show that
they can do so with the same impunity, and England
will fall into contempt even in Persia.

I have here also to observe, that on my arrival
at Bokhara, I immediately asked what had become of
Hassan Baba, the man sent by the Assaff-ood-Dowla,

118 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

at the request of Colonel Sheil, who was a Mervee.
To my great astonishment, I learned that though
he had arrived two months before my arrival at
Bokhara, he never had seen the Ameer, and though
he had delivered the letter and present of the Assaff-
ood-Dowla, His Majesty never deigned to give him
any answer whatever. This shows still further the
necessity for controlling him. I shall take this
opportunity of saying a few words on the character
of the Ameer.

My readers may ask what I think about the cha-
racter of the Ameer. There can be no doubt that he
is tyrannical and cruel ; witness the deaths of his
five brothers, and the many murdered Makhrams who
refused to pander to his passions. Muhammed All
Khan, King of Khokand, was not only murdered by
him, but also his pregnant wife was not only killed,
but the living child severed from her womb was cut
to pieces. His profligacy is universally spoken of;
his disposition is not only suspicious, but variable;
but at the same time we must not forget some good
points.

He does not tyrannize over his poor subjects, who
pass by the name of Fukarra, but protects them
powerfully against the tyranny of the Serkerdeha, and
is therefore liked by the commons, and detested by
the nobility. He is not fond of money, and hates
bribery in the extreme ; affects to take Timur as his

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 119

pattern, and has therefore a similar motto for his
seal, i. e. Hakan Adalat — " Truth and Equity."

His desire for information is unbounded, and he
therefore puts to strangers question after question,
and if he were not in the hands of Abdul Samut
Khan he might yet become another Muhammed Ali ;
and with this advantage over the Pasha of Egypt,
that he would have contrived to make the poor
happy, of which Muhammed Ali has no idea. I
must repeat, that it was a great mistake of the Bri-
tish Government not to have allowed his Ambassador
to come here. Even the Russian Ambassador told
me that his Government would not have anything
to do with the King of Bokhara until the Ameer had
sent an Ambassador to England apologizing for his
conduct. He gets soon incensed, and when he is
angry the blood comes into his face, and creates con-
vulsive action of the muscles ; and in such fits he
gives the most outrageous orders, reckless of conse-
quences. He has put down by the simple word
Hookum, i. e. Order, the most ancient customs, and
has overthrown the power of the mullahs utterly.
He delights to hear that people tremble at his name,
and laughs with violence when he hears of their
apprehensions. He is jealous of Muhammed Ali, in
Egypt, and says that his country will never equal
Bokhara. He expressed no contempt for England,
but was exceedingly anxious to become reconciled to

120 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

it; but the continual suspicions infused into his
mind, made him hesitate dismissing me, — suspicions
engrafted there by those who well knew this weak
point of his nature ; and, as the Kazi Kelaun assured
me, he more than once had exclaimed, " The wounds
of my heart for having slain those English people
will never heal."

And I must now declare, that I prefer him, in
spite of his faults, to the base Abdul Samut Khan;
and Colonel Sheil, knowing that Abdul Samut Khan
was in India, ought to have asked of Sir Claude Mar-
tin Wade, who is well acquainted with Abdul Samut
Khan's character, what kind of a man he was. I
am now in England, and enabled to reflect on sub-
jects more maturely than at the time when I was
surrounded with dangers and suffering from illness ;
and I must say that I cannot understand why Colonel
Sheil refused to give me a letter for the King of
Bokhara, whilst he gave me two letters of introduc-
tion, the one for Haje Ibrahim, Abdul Samut Khan's
brother, a most consummate villain, and another for
Abdul Samut Khan himself.

Let us now look a little at another point — the
commerce between these countries and Russia.
The following statement of Mr. McGregor, the
Secretary to the Board of Trade, is highly valuable,
subject only to a few corrections :

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 121

The trade of Russia with Khiva and Bokhara appears to
be growing into importance, chiefly from Nijnei-Novogorod,
and through the town of Orenburg, on the river Aral. This
town is admirably situated for trade with the Kirghises, and
with Khiva and Bokhara, although a part of the Russian
trade with the countries east of the Caspian is carried on
from Astrakan across that sea, and to some extent through
Persia. Orenburg, which has a population estimated at
nineteen thousand inhabitants, is situated on the north bank
of the Aral. This long tortuous river, with the mountain
range of the same name, forms a boundary between Euro-
pean Russia and Asia. It is shallow, and of little advantage
for navigable purposes, but it abounds with fish. The town
of Orenburg is regularly built and fortified. The trade of
the town is chiefly carried on at Bazaars, on the south or
Asiatic side of the river.

In 1833 there arrived, according to Schnitzler, fourteen
caravans of two thousand five hundred and forty-seven
camels, exclusive of horses; and thirteen caravans of four
thousand seven hundred and sixty-nine camels, and two hun-
dred and sixty-four horses departed, laden with goods, for
various parts of Asia, chiefly for the country of the Kir-
ghises, for Khiva, and for Bokhara.

The Khanat of Khiva, which now comprises a vast region
along the Caspian from Persia, north to the Kirghises Tartar
country, and east to the Oxus and the Lake Ural, has only,
according to Burnes, a population not exceeding two hun-
dred thousand inhabitants. He describes them as organ-
ized bandits ; and, according to other authors, they are not
generally better than predatory savages. It is agricultural
where the ground is sufficiently fertile for cultivation. There
are few horned cattle ; sheep, goats, and horses are numerous,
and all these are used as, and considered the chief food of the
inhabitants. There are few manufactures, except some coarse
cottons and silk stuffs made by the women. Camels are

122 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

chiefly used as beasts of burden, and caravans of these pro-
ceed annually for Russian merchandise to] Orenburg, Astra-
kan, and Karaghan, on the east coast of the Caspian, and
others go south to Cabul and Persia. This trade is conducted
by the Turkomauns, Khivans, and Persians. The Khan,
who is chief of the Usbeks, or dominant races, levies duties
on goods entering or passing through the Khanat; and espe-
cially at the ports or landing-places of Mangasluk and Ka-
raghan, where boats with goods arrive from Astrakan. The
capital of Khiva is a town of mud huts, Avith three stone
mosques, and a mud palace. Its chief trade is in slaves, of
whom there are about forty thousand in the Khanat, and it is
said there are many captured Russians who are slaves in
Khiva.

The Khanat of Khokan bounds closely on Russia. This
mountainous region produces silk and cotton, and various
grains, coals, and iron abound. Agriculture, pasturage, and
rearing silk-worms, and mounting cottons, and embroidered
silks. Russian goods find their way, to a considerable
amount, to Khokan, the capital. It is said that this town
has a population of one hundred and fifty thousand. It is,
like Khiva, built of mud, with the exception of three stone
bazaars. Russian caravans from the Siberian towns of Semi-
polatinsk on the banks of the Irtish, and from Petroparstok
on the Ichim, are said to pass also through Khokan to the
frontiers of China, with Russian merchandise. Mussulmans
pay a duty of two and a half per cent, on goods imported,
and other importers five per cent.

The Khanat of Bokhara, or the country of the Uzbec
Tartars, comprises about two hundred and thirty thousand
square miles of Central Asia, and Burnes estimates its
population at one million of inhabitants. Other authorities
estimate the Uzbecs alone at one million five hundred
thousand, and the other races at nearly one million. Many
portions of this region are remarkably fertile, and agri-

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 123

culture is the principal source of occupation and subsistence.
Wheat, barley, rice, maize, beans, melons, are all grown,
with several other kinds of grain, vegetables, and fruits,
sheep and goats; the latter yield the fine hair or wool
scarcely inferior to Cashmeer — the former the jet-black
woolly skins used for Persian caps, &c. ; about two hundred
thousand skins are annually exported. Mutton is the chief
animal food. Horses and oxen are reared; the flesh of the
latter is only eaten by the poor. The manufacturing industry
is unimportant; some embroidery, silk stuffs, shagreen, sabres,
fire-arms, and articles of various metals, and leather, are
among the limited quantity of fabrics made. The capital,
Bokhara, is described by Burnes as a town containing one
hundred and fifty thousand inhabitants. It has massive
buildings, three hundred and sixty mosques, three hundred
schools, the Khan's palace, or rather fortress; houses built
of bricks dried in the sun ; very narrow and dirty streets ;
lofty arched bazaars, in which the different trades have their
distinct sections; and ponds and fountains for the supply of
water. The slave and gem markets are open only twice
a week; all others are open daily. Fruits and jellies of
all kinds abound in the market, and plenty of ice is to
\>e had during the hottest weather. Tea is the favourite
beverage. There are numerous large baths. This mart,
which is to Central Africa the great entrepot, is described
as presenting unceasing activity and noise. The caravans
from and to Russia travel by the following routes, viz.:
by the route of Khiva, to the shores of and across the
Caspian, from and to Astrakan ; by the route to and from
Orenburg, by land, in sixty days, through Orghenje in
Khiva; to and from Trodiska, in Tobolsk, by the route
east of the lake Aral, in forty-nine days; and to and from
Petroparstok, in ninety days. Of the whole number, two
thousand, which leave India annually, about one thousand
camels reach Bokhara with Oriental goods; the remaining

124 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

thousand stop in Affghanistaun, Cabul, or diverge west into
Persia*.

The population of Khiva is at least six hundred
thousand. Included in this number are forty thou-
sand Persians, including Kaffir Seeah-Poosh. The
Russian slaves, who caused the war with Russia
and Khiva, and which amounted to two hundred,
have been sent to Russia by the advice of Sir R.
Shakespeare. Mr. Abbot, who preceded him, was
foolish enough to advise the King of Khiva not to
give up the Russian slaves until he had treated with
the Russian Emperor, but Shakespeare was wise
enough to advise their immediate cession. The
Khan of Khiva is, as I think I have observed already,
very anxious to make a strict alliance with England,
and it seems that England encourages him, but, to
speak the truth, it is not of the least use ; for though
the Khan of Khiva has, perhaps, not yet killed any
Englishmen, I am sure that he is equally disposed, or
rather more so, than the King of Bokhara. From
all that I have heard of the Khan of Khiva, he is
a horrid brute, and the atrocities committed by the
Khan of Khiva exceed those of the King of Bokhara,
and they are too horrid to be described. I say,
studiously, perhaps he has not killed any English-
man, for I am not at all certain that he has not killed

* Commercial Statistics, Vol. II., p. 637.

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 125

several. For I have it on good authority that he has
strangled several Europeans. But Colonel Sheil, to
whom I mentioned the fact, told me that those
Europeans, though Germans by birth, were Russian
spies.

Besides that, what can England expect from the
King of Khiva ? Bokhara and Khiva are like the Bar-
bary States — slave-making states — and ought to be
put down ; and if England were to make an alliance
with Khiva, Persia and Russia would be her enemies.
The population of the city of Khokand is three hun-
dred thousand, and the entire population is three
millions. From the best sources, viz., the Kazi Ke-
laun, the Tatshick merchants, and other mullahs, we
know that the population of the kingdom of Bokhara
is one million two hundred thousand, of whom two
hundred thousand are Persian slaves. The capital
contains one hundred and eighty thousand. Horse-
flesh is considered a delicacy ; I received it repeatedly
from the King's table, and the King eats it himself.
The manner of drinking tea in the Mogul fashion, is
with milk, salt, grease, and cinnamon.

The town of Bokhara is situated one day's journey
to the north of the river Jehoon or Amoo ; Ghengis
Khan besieged it in 1219, and took it in 1220.
Thousands of Jews emigrated at that time to China.
The houses are mostly built of mud. The chief
places for trade in the kingdom are Bokhara, Kar-

126 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

shee, Karakol, Samarcand, and Karkee. There are
immense numbers of shops, in which chiefly Russian
goods are sold, full three hundred merchants, from
Chicarpore, in Scinde, and other parts of Hindus-
taun ; but the chief trade is carried on with Russia.
Mighty caravans arrive from and go to Orenbourg
and Siberia, transported by the Kirghese.

It is very remarkable that the Prophet Ezekiel,
in the twenty-seventh chapter, fourteenth verse, gives
an exact description of the trade carried on by the
Turkomauns with the inhabitants of Bokhara, Khiva,
and Khokand. The Prophet says : " They of the
house of Togarmah (i. e. the Turkomauns) traded in
thy fairs with horses and horsemen, and mules."
The Turkomauns to this day, like the Swiss Guards,
are mercenaries, and let themselves out for a few
tengas a day. It is also remarkable, that I fre-
quently heard the Turkomauns call themselves
Toghramah, and the Jews call them Togarmah.

Viewing the hosts of camels coming with mer-
chandise from Cashmeer, Cabiil, Khokand, Khetay,
and Orenbourg, the passage of Isaiah lx. 6, comes
forcibly on the mind, where the Prophet says : " The
multitude of camels shall cover thee, the dromeda-
ries of Midian and Ephah; all they from Sheba shall
come : they shall bring gold and incense." Men-
tioning gold, I must not forget, that near Samarcand
there are gold mines and turquoises. And the King

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 127

of Bokhara wanted to know whether there are tur-
quoises to be found in England.

The articles which are brought from Bokhara to
Russia are dry fruit, silks, indigo, and caps. The
articles brought from Russia, calicoes, muslins, &c.
The merchants from Bokhara transport also to Rus-
sia goods from Khokand, Tashkand, Khokand, and
Tiirkistaun.

Among the chief dignitaries of the state may be
numbered :

The Goosh-Bekee, or Keeper of the Seal ; this situation is
now vacant, since the late Goosh-Bekee, an excellent man,
was killed by order of the present Ameer, though he was
chiefly indebted to him, as we have shown, for his accession
to the throne. He was not only the Vizier, but also the
Chief of the Custom-house; but this situation is now vested
in the Dastarkhanjee, who carries a gold hatchet, and
brings the victuals to the King. The person who occupies
at present this situation is a man of the most licentious
character.

Shekhawl, Minister for Foreign Affairs.

Moonshee Basld, Chief Secretary of State.

Makhram, Chamberlains, who are not only the spies, but
also the ruffians of the King. They came almost every day
swaggering into my room, accompanied by a Mirza (Secre-
tary), telling me, in an authoritative and vulgar overbearing
manner, " Hasrat (His Majesty) wants several questions to
be answered by you !"

The dignitaries of the Muhammedan religion :

1. Sheikh al-Islam, Chief of the Ulemas.

2. Nakeeb, who decides the disputes between the soldiers.

128 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

3. Kazi-Kelaun, who settles the disputes between the
Fukara, i. e. subjects.

4. Reis, Minister of Public Worship — Superintendent of
the Morals of the place ; he does not allow smoking, and gets
people bastinadoed if they neglect going to the mosque.

5. Meet Shab, Director of the Night, who announces,
with a sound resembling a loud drum, that people are not
allowed to stir about in the night time.

These are the chief authorities; beside others, as in
different Muhammedan countries.

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 129

CHAPTER XX.

Departure from Bokhara. Dr. Wolff discovers a Plot to kill and rob
him, en route. Thousands attend to witness their Departure. Dr.
Wolff refuses to separate from Abbas Kouli Khan. Arrival at
Jesman-Doo. Vile Conduct of Muhammed Taki. Abbas Kouli
Khan expresses his Displeasure. Derveesh of Yarkand; Conver-
sation with him. Affghaun Seyd; Conversation with him. The
Calmucks; their singular Conduct. Remarkable fine sense of
Smelling and Hearing in Turkomauns. Appearance of Usbecks.
Conversation with Abbas Kouli Khan; he thinks Abdul Samut
Khan was the Murderer of Colonel Stoddart and Captain Conolly.
Visit from a Mullah ; his Account of Timur. Shahr Sabz. Route —
Jesman-Doo; Shahr Islam. History of Afrasiab. Reports of Guzl-
Bash about the English. Mortesa and Abdullah advise Dr. Wolff to
leave Abbas Kouli Khan; he refuses. Peikand. Karakol. The
Governor of Karakol warns Dr. Wolff that a Plot is laid to take
away his life. Hussein. Route — Allat. The Caravan lose their way.
An attempt made by Ismael .and Mortesa to seize Dr. Wolff; he
calls on the Merchants of the Caravan to protect him. Sayen.
Dr. Wolff wishes to throw away the Money in the Desert; Abbas
Kouli Khan takes it in his keeping.

We set out from Bokhara on the 3rd of August,
and arrived one farsagh from Bokhara, at the village
called Jesman-Doo, where we halted for a time in a
garden on the border of a tank. The party consisted
of Abbas Kouli Khan; Dil Assa Khan; Ameer
Sarog; Kaher Kouli; Sabhan Ullah Beyk., Ambas-
sador of the King of Bokhara to the King of Persia;
Ameer Abool Kasem, Ambassador to Queen Victoria ;
Haje Ismael, from Yarkand; four Persian slaves,
whom I caused to escape; one thousand slaves,
Vol. II. K

130 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

who had bought their liberty ; the murderers hired
by Abdul Samut Khan; merchants from Cabul;
derveeshes and fakeers from Hindustaun; Mirza
Abdul Wahab, who painted for me portraits when
at Bokhara, and who wrote a narrative of my suf-
ferings ; in all full two thousand camels.

Previous to quitting Bokhara, I discovered that
the Nayeb had agreed with Abdullah, Dil Assa
Khan, Ismael Khan, Mortesa, Ameer Sarog, and
Kaher Kouli, that they should kill me, and take from
me the three thousand tillahs, as he thought he
could get with ease the six thousand tillahs by pre-
senting my note of hand to Colonel Sheil ; and be-
side this, the three thousand tillahs of interest at
twenty per cent, which he gave Conolly, and which
he took back after his death. I was informed of this
plot by the Jews, Mullahs Meshiakh, Pinehas, and
Simkha, by the servants of the Grand Kazi, and
even those of the Nayeb. Abdullah confessed it at
Meshed, and Abbas Kouli Khan had received simi-
lar information.

On our leaving Bokhara, thousands of people
came forth, Jews and Usbecks, Turkomauns and
Persians, and the streets resounded with the ex-
clamation, "God preserve the Ameer that he has
sent you away." A veiled woman stood in the
street; she wept, and exclaimed, "What joy your
wife will have! how will she sing you have been

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 131

born again ! Such a favour has not been shown for
a long time by the Padishah."

The conspirators, Mortesa and Abdullah, tried to
persuade me to separate from Abbas Kouli Khan,
but I refused. 1 said, "I know your villany;
I shall always ride in the train of Abbas Kouli
Khan."

We thus proceeded, by order of the King, to
Jesman-Doo. Muhammed Taki, the astrologer from
Heraut, who came with Abbas Kouli Khan from
Persia, for the purpose of getting, by the Shah's
influence with the Ameer, his wife, who had been
made a slave of by the Turkomauns, both re-
covered her, and, besides this, received one hundred
ducats from the Ameer. When he came to the gar-
den of Jesman-Doo, to our surprise, without his wife,
Abbas Kouli Khan asked Mm, "Where is your
wife ?" He replied, u I have looked in the stars for
two or three nights successively, and seen one star
with a black tail, from which I perceived that misery
is entailed upon her, and therefore I have resold her
for forty ducats and a beautiful high-bosomed slave
girl, only seventeen." I never saw in my life a man
so incensed as Abbas Kouli Khan. He rose from the
ground, cast away his galyoon with such violence
that it broke to pieces, and said, " God burn you
and your stars. You rascal, you did not look on the
stars, but on the money and the beauty of the young

K 2

132 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

girl. I spit in your beard." The astrologer went
out quite mortified.

Soon after, a derveesh of Yarkand entered the
garden. He was of that class of derveeshes called
the Bektash, who pretend to have attained to such a
degree of knowledge that no divine revelation is of
any use to them, nor any book. He asked me, u How
do you prove the necessity of religion ?" I replied,
that all nations wrere forced to confess that religion
is the only support to our weak nature, and that
knowledge which has only for its object terrestrial
things is unworthy of the name of knowledge. But
in order to arrive at a knowledge of heavenly
things, a heavenly mind is required. There is a
spiritual sense in the heart, which I call a revelation
of God to the heart, and therefore God will disap-
pear from those who seek Him only with their
intellect. This is the case with you Bektash, and
many European philosophers. The revelations of
God, as laid down in our sacred books, may be
considered as wings by which men are able to soar
up to heaven. Only by a steady looking on divine
revelation, is human nature able to progress towards
heaven. Nothing is so terrible and awful to man as
when God disappears from human reason ; I mean,
when we seek truth, independent of its Author.

An Affghaun Seyd entered the garden, and said,
"Aye, you Kafir! have you succeeded in cheating

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 133

the Ameer, so that he let you go ? If he had only
given you into my hands, I would soon have made
away with you by my javelin." Abbas Kouli Khan
said to him, " Go, and leave the Frankee alone ;
he is a derveesh." "A derveesh !" he sneeringly
replied, "I know these Frankee derveeshes — I know
these English derveeshes. They go into a country,
spy out mountains and valleys, seas and rivers; find
out a convenient adit, and then go home ; inform a
gentleman there — a chief, who has the name of
Company, who sends soldiers, and then takes a
country ; tell him what I say." After this he left
the garden.

Some Calmucks, also, purposely called on me.
They are also called the Eliad. They said, " We
come to see the renowned Frankee derveesh." They
are of a yellow colour; they were sitting down,
and looking at me. They made remarks on every
movement of my body, which amused Abbas Kouli
Khan so much, that he laughed incessantly. After
they had examined me from head to foot, he
advised me to allow them to pursue still closer inves-
tigations, which I declined.

Like the Hazarah, they have scarcely any beard.
At last, one of them turned to a Jew, and asked him,
in a low tone, to give him brandy and wine. They
addressed me in Russian. I told them, in Persian,
that I did not understand Russian, and asked them

134 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

where they had learned it. They replied, " From
the Nogay Tatars." Then they began: " Have
you heard of Nicholas Pawlo witch ? he is the greatest
Krawl Russia has ever enjoyed." They asked me
whether we had many slaves in England. I told
them that slavery was prohibited.

My rascally servant, Abdullah, expressed a wish
to go from Jesman-Doo again to see Abdul Samut
Khan, but Abbas Kouli Khan prevented him.

An extraordinary power of smelling in a Turko-
maun, Khan Saat from Sarakhs, was indicated to me
here. He said, drawing up his nostrils, " I smell a
caravan of Usbecks ;" and in a few hours a caravan
from Organtsh arrived full of them. It is remark-
able how the Turkomauns know, by the footsteps in
the desert, the person who has been there, nay, the
very tribe of Turkomauns that has passed. When
Turkomauns or Calmucks see people talking from a
distance, I frequently heard them say, " Let us draw
our ears." They then lie down on the ground, and
hear from a distance what even two persons whisper
together, and relate the exact conversation.

Another party of derveeshes came to me and
observed, " The time will come when there shall be
no difference between rich and poor, between high
and low, when property shall be in common, even
wives and children."

Suddenly we were alarmed by Usbecks coming

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 135

in great consternation. I was afraid that an order
had been issued to fetch me back by the Ameer, but
they reported that news had arrived from Tsheesakh,
a city beyond Samarcand, that Sheer Ali Khan, the
present King of Khokand, had made an alliance with
the Girghese and Kasaks, and had even invited the
Russians to come through Khokand, and Sheer Ali
Khan was seriously contemplating a march against
Bokhara to avenge the death of Muhammed Ali
Khan; Abbas Kouli Khan, my friend, spoke to me at
Jesman-Doo about the villany of Abdul Samut Khan,
and said that there was not the least shadow of doubt
that Abdul Samut Khan was the murderer of Colonel
Stoddart and Captain Conolly, and other Europeans;
but he, Abbas Kouli Khan, should be sorry if Abdul
Samut Khan were put to death by the Ameer, for he
might, after all, be of service one day, to Persia, on
a contemplated attack on the part of Persia on Bo-
khara; for, as Abbas Kouli Khan expressed himself,
u A fellow like Abdul Samut Khan, (may his father
be burned !) is capable of turning against the Ameer
when he sees it will be to his advantage, and of put-
ting him to death with as much facility as he did
Stoddart and Conolly."

We then had a visit of a mullah from Bokhara,
who asked me whether Timur was much spoken of
in England. I replied in the affirmative. He then
asked me whether they knew of his daughter Aga-

136 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

beyk, and of his sister Toorkan-Khatoon, and his
only son Jehaungeer. The death of these people,
he said, made Timur weep, who had a heart of
iron, and never wept before. They are buried at
Shahr Sabz." Thus far the mullah.

I then got the following information about Shahr
Sabz. It is a central city of Bokhara, but separated
from the King, independent, and governed by its
own Khan. The reason of it is this: 1st. The people
of Shahr Sabz are by far better and more coura-
geous horsemen than the people of Bokhara. 2nd.
They can put in a moment the whole town under
water, so that troops cannot reach them. 3rd.
It serves for the people of Bokhara as an asylum
from the tyranny of the Ameer ; and therefore the
people of Bokhara do not wish to take it. The
Khan of Shahr Sabz, however, for form's sake, sent
to the Ameer one thousand horsemen, as a subsidy
in his war against Khiva and Khokand, but they
were always ordered by the Khan of Shahr Sabz
not to give him the least assistance in reality.

From Jesman-Doo we proceeded to Shahr-Islam,
the city of Afrasiab.

As the name of Afrasiab is not familiar to the
generality of English readers, nay, does not meet
even with insertion in very extensive biographical
works, we shall subjoin the following particulars of
that Sovereign. He was the ninth King of the

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 137

Peshdadian dynasty of Persia. He was by birth a
Turkomaun. He descended from Feridun, who had
a rebellions son, named Tur, and sought, like Absa-
lom of old, with whom some think he was contem-
porary, the kingdom of his father. Frustrated in
in his plots against his father, he fled to Tatary,
where he became a King. Tur had a son, named
Peshang, from whom (though this point is not quite
clear) Afrasiab descended. Ancient Persian authors
make him out a descendant, in some way, from this
Tur, who died in battle against the Persian Monarch,
Minuchihr, the direct descendant in the male
branch from Feridun. The incursions of Afrasiab
and his Tatars during the reign of Peshang, com-
pelled the Persian King Minuchihr, to sue for peace,
which was granted, the Oxus being the boundary
of the two Empires. Minuchihr was succeeded by
Naudar, an unpopular Sovereign, against whom Afra-
siab waged successful war. Afrasiab avenged on him
his grandsire's wrong, or what he supposed such ;
and Afrasiab killed with his own hand the Persian
King Naudar. Afrasiab became King of Persia,
and ruled it, like Timur, with a rod of iron. The
hero, Zal, the glory of Persia, rose against the
tyrant ; he defeated Afrasiab, refused the proffered
throne himself, and raised the legitimate branch to
its lost seat. Afrasiab strove undaunted to recover
Persia during various reigns ; but at length a Persian

138 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

King arose strong enough to carry the war home to
the Turkomaun himself. Kai Khosro, after a severe
battle, seized on the palace of Afrasiab, ultimately
on the Turkomaun Chief himself, and put him to
death. Afrasiab's name being the most famous of
an olden dynasty, represents anything very aged in
Persian annals. Afrasiab has been thought of as
high an antiquity as even the King of the Deeves
and Afrits, Solomon himself. We ought to except
from the above censure the Biographical Dictionary
published by Messrs. Longman ; and we can refer
our readers for further particulars to Ferdousi, and
Sir John Malcolm's work on Persia.

At Shahr-Islam, people from CaMl crowded
around me; they were mostly Guzl-Bash. They
said that the English had made themselves enemies
by various things. 1st. That they did not protect
the Guzl-Bash. 2nd. That they offended Nawaub
Jabar Khan, brother to Dost Muhammed Khan, their
friend; and 3rd, as I have already stated, by the
customs they introduced.

Morteza and Abdullah, the conspirators against
my life, came up to me, and said, that the bustle on
leaving Bokhara was so great, that I should do
better to quit Abbas Kouli Khan, and pitch my tent
at a considerable distance from him; and, besides
that, that as an English Eljee (for thus they call
all the English), I was a greater man than either

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 139

Abbas Kouli Khan or any one else of the caravan,
and therefore I should keep aloof from them. I told
them, "I know your villany; you have not to pre-
scribe to me where I am to pitch my tent. I shall
ride with Abbas Kouli Khan."

At Shahr-Islam I observed that the trunks in
which the three thousand tillahs lay were somewhat
broken. After passing Peikand, therefore, and arriv-
ing at Karakol, I bought strong cloth, and Mirza
Abdul Wahab, the Persian who painted for me the
pictures, and whose description of my sufferings is in
the Appendix, and also Haje Ismael from Yarkand,
assisted me in folding them up carefully. And in
order that I might not be obliged to trust the trunks
to Morteza, the Chief of the Kafila (caravan), I
bought a mule at Karakol, in order that I might
have the money always under my own eyes. We
stopped at Karakol two days, in the house of Shaker
Beyk — a house which belonged to the King. Hussein
Khan, the Governor of Karakol, had sent aTonfiden-
tial servant to me, through whom he apologized for
not waiting on me ; though, as he expressed himself,
" his heart and soul was bound up with my heart
and soul thirteen years ago at Karakol." He in-
formed me that I was, on my route to Meshed, in
as great danger as at Bokhara; for Abdul Samut
Khan, ever thirsting for blood, and the greatest
scourge which Bokhara had ever seen, had hired

140 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

assassins to put me to death in the desert ; and these
assassins were my servant Abdullah, Morteza, the
Kafila Bashi, Ibrahim Abbas, Dil Assa Khan, Ismael,
Rahim Beyk, and others. He advised me, therefore,
to employ the four Persian slaves who had succeeded
in leaving Bokhara with me, with which fact he was
acquainted, as they acknowleged it to him, as senti-
nels against the murderers; and also, that I should not
quit Abbas Kouli Khan's side. I must here observe,
that I had committed at Bokhara a great mistake,
by dismissing Hussein, for though a great rogue, he
had still a species of affection for me, since he had
accompanied me from Meshed to Cabul in the year
1832, and was a check on Abdullah, who was a
perfect concentration of all the rascality of the East,
— always drunk with opium, and intriguing; from
which latter defect Hussein was not wholly free,
of which point I give the following illustration.
There are scorpions at Bokhara, and a person
who livetl near me at Bokhara was stung by one of
them. Hussein pretended to cure diseases by saying
Duas (charms), and was called in to the case, — I do
not know with what success ; but immediately after
he had said his Dua, he went to the mosque, and
intrigued with a woman, for which he got a tremen-
dous thrashing.

On my arrival at Allat, I observed that Ameer
Sarog, Abdullah, and the rest of the hired assassins,

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 141

were around my mule when we had pitched our
tent. The day following, when I wanted to load it
with my trunks, I found that it was lame. I there-
fore informed Abbas Kouli Khan of this circum-
stance. He ordered that the mule should in future
be dragged on with his mules, and that during the
night time my trunks should be watched by one of
his servants placed at my disposal. Haje Ismael, of
Yarkand, perceiving the design of the villains, slept
in my tent. The four slaves whom I saved watched
them ; Abdullah and Morteza therefore began to
quarrel with both Abbas Kouli Khan's servant and
Haje Ismael.

We marched then towards Jehaar-Joo. It was
night. The whole of the caravan lost their way.
Abbas Kouli Khan, who most kindly held the ropes
of my horse, in order not to lose sight of me, con-
signed me to the care of his brother, Nujuf Kouli
Khan, in order that he himself might look out for
the road. Then Ismael and Morteza tried to push
him away, when I loudly exclaimed in Persian, " Will
you commit treachery?" This exclamation made
the principal persons of the caravan rally round me.
I pointed out to them Ismael and Morteza, who then
retired. Towards daylight, Abdullah came up to
me, and said to Nujuf Kouli Khan and myself, that
Abbas Kouli Khan had ordered that I should remain
behind and await his return. We observed, that

142 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

this was a lie. We traced the footsteps of Abbas
Kouli Khan's horse, and soon found him. He was
anxiously expecting me. Abdullah then began to
sell the greater part of my victuals to the ransomed
slaves. We arrived then at Sayen, and stopped in
the house of an Ak-Sakal, " Lord of the Beard/' a
chief. Abbas Kouli Khan sent me victuals of his
own, for he heard himself that the assassins intended
to poison me. It must be observed here, that at
Sayen, the mighty conqueror, Hullakoo Khan, whose
name is still in the mouth of every Usbeck child,
encamped with his army.

Perceiving that I was continually harassed about
the money, I said to Abbas Kouli Khan, "I will
open my trunks, and pour out the money in the open
desert, in order that the villains may be satisfied."
Abbas Kouli Khan replied, " Give me the money."
He gave it into the hands of Ali Akbar, his treasurer,
and made the people believe that he had sent the
money on to Meshed, sealed up, by a Turkomaun.
It is a remarkable fact, that though the Turkomauns
are great robbers, they are entrusted by merchants
with money, which they safely convey to the owner,
provided it be sealed. The assassins soon felt that
my trunk was no longer so heavy. This made some
of them desist from annoying me, but Abdullah, in
whose horrid countenance one could perceive that he
was a murderer, and who did not blush to say that

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA; 143

he had murdered two people, and who was particu-
larly charged by Abdul Samut Khan to take away
my life, as he confessed at Meshed, did not cease
from continually annoying- me. The four slaves
whom I supported, and Haje Ismael, told me that
he continually observed, " I shall kill this Kafir by
irritating him." One day, when it was exceedingly
hot, I took off my gown and gave it to Abdullah. He
rode away from me with it, and sold it to Kaher
Kouli, and said he had lost it.

144 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

CHAPTER XXI.

Arrival at Jehaar-Joo. Abbas Kouli Khan calls on the Caravan to
protect Dr. Wolff. Bokhara Ambassador demands Money from
Dr. "Wolff. Rafitak. Bokharese Horsemen from the Ameer
demand Tribute. Dr. Wolff disconsolate. Arrival at Ujaaje.
Mowr. Caravan declared Prisoners. Ameer of Bokhara orders the
Turkomauns to release the Caravan ; they refuse to obey ; their
Khaleefa threatens to leave them if they injure the Caravan ; they
obey him. Conversation of Derveesh. Turkomaun. A Derveesh
tells the Story of Scanderbeg. Fakeers. Sultan Sanjaar. The
Khaleefa speaks of Ghengis Khan. Khaleefa' s Son speaks ill
of the Assaff-ood-Dowla. Tribe of Salor best of the Turkomauns.
Ameer Sarog and Kaher Kouli lay a Plot to murder Dr. Wolff ;
the Khaleefa frustrates it. Jews aid the Khivites against Bo-
khara. Joseph of Talkhtoon. Turkomaun Tales of Sultan Sanjaar.
Turkomauns, in despite of Treaty, kill the Messenger of the Assaff-
ood-Dowla. The Khaleefa's Conversation the night of his depar-
ture with Dr. Wolff.

On our arrival at Jehaar-Joo, I learnt that Is-
mael, Dil Assa Khan's man, Kaher Kouli, Rahim
Beyk, and Ameer Sarog*, with some others, would
come in a body, demand money, and, if I did not
give it them, would put me to death. I made Abbas
Kouli Khan acquainted with this project. He
summoned the conspirators before him, and the prin-
cipal people of the caravan, and told them the fol-
lowing words : " The Englishman that I have under
my care purposes to escape to Khiva, for these people
intend to murder him. He who is a good Mussul-
man will join me to protect him from the hand of

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 145

every rascal." The principal people replied, " We
will burn the father of the first rascal that touches
him." I pointed out to them the assassins; they
protested against having any such intention.

It was awful in the night time to hear from the
tower of Jehaar-Joo, the voice exclaiming, " Watch,
watch, for the people of Organtsh may come, kill
your cattle, and destroy the child in the mother's
womb." The Governor of Jehaar-Joo sent, by
order of the Ameer of Bokhara, fifty men on horse-
back, to dig for water at Rafitak, that we might
not experience any drought, for the people of Merwe
had filled up the wells, that the people of Khiva
might find no water. During our stay at Jehaar-
Joo, Ameer Abul Kasim, the Ambassador for Queen
Victoria, in the place of Ak Muhammed, who was
the first nominated to the office, incessantly annoyed
me with requests for money; for he said Abdul
Samut Khan had himself stated to the King that
he had given me three thousand tillahs fdr the ex-
penses of his Ambassador to England. I gave him,
therefore, some money, and after the horsemen had
returned from clearing the wells at Rafitak, we left
Jehaar-Joo.

We rode two nights and two days, without

ceasing, from fear of the Khivites. The agonies I

sustained on horseback I cannot describe ; for I felt

that the fall from the horse at Bokhara had produced

Vol. II. L

146 RRATIYE OF THE MISSION

internal injuries. The nearer we came to Rafitak,
the greater was the consternation of the whole cara-
van, on account of the reports that reached us
that the King of Khiva was approaching, and Rafi-
tak is a rallying point of the Khivites. I confess
that I should have been glad had they arrived, for
they profess a friendship for the English, had not
the following circumstance damped my d
Ameer Sarog and Kaher Kouli, both Tiirkomauns,
gave me candidly to understand, that the moment the
people of Khiva approached the camp of Rafitak,
they would put me to death, and escape with all
that I had left in my trunk.

At our arrival at Rafitak, we were obliged, in
spite of the danger, to remain there two days, for
horses, mules, camels, and men, were too tired to
proceed immediately. On the very day of our start-
ing again, we perceived horsemen from a distance
approaching, and a cry from all sides was heard,
" Organtshee, Organtshee." The Khivites are thus
called by the people of Bokhara. Neither Ameer
Sarog, nor Kaher Kouli, thought of killing me ; I
stood fast by Abbas Kouli Khan, who gave orders
for fighting, while Ameer Sarog, and Kaher Kouli
ran off like whipped hounds, but Abdullah, my ser-
vant, mounted a horse and rode towards the horse-
men, with the intention, which he afterwards con-
1 at Meshed, to inform them that a Ru

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 147

Kasak was among the people in the caravan; and
also Abbas Kouli Khan, an Ambassador from Persia
to Bokhara, and an enemy of the King of Khiva.
But on the approach of the horsemen we perceived
that they were Bokharese horsemen, sent by the
Ameer, demanding two ducats for every free-bought
slave who had crossed the Oxus, for this, they said,
was an ancient custom. Abbas Kouli Khan wrote
his protest against this to the King of Bokhara.

We continued our journey. My mind was so
harassed, and the pain of my internal injury so
great, that I began to weep, and said, " Oh God,
I know that I shall not return to England to see
my wife and my child." To my greatest astonish-
ment I saw that horrid fellow Abdullah also weep-
ing. A derveesh came up to me and sung the
following words, from the famous book called Mas-
nawee :

Ham Khoda Khahe, Ham Donyae Dun,
Ecn Khyal ast, eon Mohal ast, een Jenoon.

His fancy's wild, his mind distraught,
Who casts on God and Earth his thought.

We arrived at Ujaaje, near a river, when the
Tiirkomauns conspired to stop us, which was pre-
vented by some of the tribe of Tekka. Here it was
where Hullakoo fought a battle against one of the
Kings of the Kharasms, or Organtsh, and defeated
him completely.

L 2

148 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

Thence we arrived at Mowr. The noble Kha-
leefa received me most hospitably: his sons, how-
ever, imitate ill their noble father. We were all
(the entire caravan, Abbas Konli Khan included,)
declared prisoners by the Turkomauns, until the
slaves who had already purchased their freedom
should pay nineteen thousand ducats to them. A
messenger was immediately dispatched to Bokhara
by night, and an order soon after arrived from the
Ameer, under whose protection the Turkomauns
of Mowr have placed themselves, that we should
be permitted to depart immediately, and without
molestation. The Turkomauns then declared they
would not obey the Ameer ; on which the Khaleefa
replied, " If you do not obey, I shall leave Mowr
and settle myself at Heraut, and give you my
curse.', This had the effect required; but they
conspired still to smite the caravan with the sword
on the road, and they compelled me to pay for the
merchandize on eight camels sent by the Nayeb
to his brother, Haje Ibrahim, at Meshed, for they
said, "Abdul Samut Khan is the King's right
hand."

While at Mowr, a derveesh, who came from
Samarcand, related one evening to the people of
the caravan, all seated on the ground, the deeds of
Timur, also called Tamerlane; how he built at
Sabz-Awar a tower of the skulls of men; of his

OF DE. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 149

defeating Bayazid; of his entrance into Samarcand;
of the festivities of triumph which he gave at Samar-
cand ; of his death at Atrar when just on the point
to march against China.

Whilst he thus was relating the deeds of Timur,
he suddenly broke off, and turning to me he said,
" The English people are now Timur, for they are
the descendants of Ghengis Khan. The Inglees
will be the conquerors of the world. On my pil-
grimage to Mecca, I came to Aden, where they
keep a strong force, and from whence they may
march to Mecca whenever they please ; and march
towards Mecca they shall. "

A Turkomaun present said, " The Russians shall
be the conquerors of the world. They have now .
built a strong castle almost in the midst of the sea,
not far from Khiva. The people of Khiva have
once burnt it down, but they soon built it up
again. All is over with Islaam."

A derveesh sitting among us made the following
observation : " The great mullahs of Samarcand
assert that Russia is the Jaaj-Majooj, i. e. Gog and
Magog, and this has been already predicted by
Ameer Sultan, the great derveesh of Room."

To my greatest astonishment, the derveesh re-
lated to the Turkomauns the history of the Apostacy
of Iskandar Beyk from Islamism, in the year 862
of the Hejira, whose name was first Girgis Kas-

150 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

trioota, but who received for his valour the name of
Iskandar Beyk from Sultan Murad, whom he forsook
and turned to the Europeans, and became a scourge
of the Mussulmans, and put a stop to their con-
quests. From this circumstance one may observe,
that there are still clever people among the der-
veeshes, and that they are not all, as described by
Mr. Perkins, a set of useless beggars. The der-
veeshes and Jews preserve some knowledge of
religion in the desert, among those wild Turko-
mauns, just as the Christian monks preserved the
Bible in the middle ages in the convents from the
destruction of the Vandals, and as the monks in
Abyssinia to this day have preserved copies of the
Bible in their convents, at a time when the Gallas
inundate the country of Ethiopia. Ameer Saltan,
Shams Tabreezee, Mullah Roome, Hafiz, Saadi,
Ferdousi, Abool Kasem, are derveeshes whose names
will only be forgotten when the Eastern world and
its literature shall be utterly destroyed. The same
is the case with the Christian monks. I need only
mention the names of Thomas a Kempis, Taulerus,
Luther, Gerson, Sixtus Senensis : these will be in
everlasting remembrance.

There was also in the caravan a Fakeer from
Patna, who was on a pilgrimage to Russia, where
the Hindus have a place of pilgrimage, the name of
which I have forgotten. He told the Tiirkomauns

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 151

of the deeds of the British nation in Hindustaun,
of General Lake and Lord Clive.

Another came forward. He was from Scinde,
and said, " There is now a Governor in Scinde,
Lord Napier by name, who is like lightning" flame.
He has beaten one hundred thousand Pooluj with
four hundred men." The whole caravan exclaimed,
"Allah, Allah, Allah! They certainly will come
here ; and if they come, we submit at once, for we
Turkomauns will never fight against those who have
the upper hand. We serve the most powerful, let
them be Hindus, Christians, or Mussulmans. Those
who give us khelaats (robes of honour), and tillahs
(ducats), we serve." The Khaleefa of Mowr ob-
served, "God rewards integrity. The English are
a people of integrity, and therefore God rewards
their integrity. We Turkomauns are thieves, and
therefore God is displeased with us."

The Turkomauns of this place and of Sarakhs
formerly provided the King of Khiva, as they do
now the Ameer of Bokhara, with horsemen, called
Sawar, or Al-Aman, horses and mules. I have
already alluded to Ezekiel xxvii., and shall only add,
that the Jews call them Togarmah, and the Turko-
mauns give themselves a similar name.

Near this place we meet also with the ruins of a
mighty city, called Sultan Sanjaar, from a King,
who, according to Sir John Malcolm's account, lived

152 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

A.D. 1140. He was the greatest of the Seljukian
dynasty, but was at last beaten by the Turkomauns.

The Khaleefa of Mowr spoke with admiration of
Hulakoo Khan, grandson of Ghengis Khan, and son
of Tooli Khan. He marched through Mowr, con-
quered Organtsh, and at last Bagdad. When the
Turkomauns of Mowr intended to plunder us, he
reminded the Turkomauns, in an exalted voice, that
such an act of treachery was not even committed by
Ghengis Khan.

It is worthy of notice, that the son of the Rabbi
of Meshed is among those Jews who became Mus-
sulmans, and turned Turkomaun.

The Khaleefa of Mowr showed great confidence
in me, by recommending to my care a Haje from
Khokand, who was on his way to Mecca.

The son of the Khaleefa called on me, and said,
" Dil Assa Khan has acted a treacherous part against
you ; but, be assured that he has only acted accord-
ing to his master's orders, the Assaff-ood-Dowla, who
is the most dishonest man in existence. Three years
are passed since he has promised to us to return the
twenty Turkomaun prisoners, and he has never done
it. There is no faith in the Kajar," by which he
meant the members of the Royal Family of Persia.
However, I have no just reason to coincide with the
opinion of the son of the Khaleefa of the character
of the Assaff-ood-Dowla, for he acted always uni-

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 153

formly kind to me. That he is afraid of the English
there can be no doubt, and that he entertains more
hope in the assistance of Russia. There is no doubt,
also, that he will declare himself King of Khorassaun
after the death of Muhammed Shah. He hates the
Haje with all his soul.

The best class of Turkomauns are those of the
tribe of Salor, who called on me, and said, " When
Tod was at Heraut, and Abbot and Shakespeare on
their way to Khiva, they employed us frequently
to give them information, which we willingly
gave to them, for Turkman perwa nedarand" The
Turkomauns do not mind whom they serve, either
the King of Bokhara, or the Khan of Khiva, or the
Padishah of Russia, or Dowlat, i. e. the Power, by
which they mean England. " And we serve you,"
they continued, " if you pay us well." I was sur-
prised to observe, that the Turkomauns and people
of Heraut were aware that the British Govern-
ment disapproved of Tod's departure from Heraut ;
but all of them assured me that Yar Muhammed
Khan would have put him to death if he had stopped
there.

A Turkomaun of the Salor tribe brought to me,
to the house of the Khaleefa, i. e. the Grand Der-
veesh of Mowr or Merve, a whole camel's load of
melons, which I declined accepting, as they generally
demand ten times more than the value as a recom-
pense.

154 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

Ameer Sarog and Kalier Kouli consulted with
each other, and determined to bring me in the night
time to their house, and then to conduct me on the
road to Khiva, and murder me there. I informed
the Khaleefa of it, who placed a guard the whole
night near my room.

I found, to my greatest surprise, two Jews at
Merve (Mowr), who had embraced the Muhammedan
religion, and become Turkomauns by profession and
pursuit.

It is to be observed, that the Jews of Mowr call
the inhabitants of Khiva Philistines; and they main-
tain that they are the descendants of the Hivites
of old. The Jews of Khiva intermarry with the
Muhammedans at Khiva, whilst the respective par-
ties preserve each their separate religion: a great
proof that the Turkomauns and Usbecks are, with
regard to their religion, in many respects, less fana-
tics than the Muhammedans in Turkey and Arabia,
where they would instantly put to death both hus-
band and wife. The Jews of Mowr, as well as
those of Bokhara, assure me that the Jews residing
at Khiva are so intimate with the Turkomauns, and
have such a hatred against the King of Bokhara,
that they frequently assist the Khivitos in battle ;
and one may frequently hear among the Khivites,
when attacking the enemy, the war-cry, in He-
brew, "Rabone Shel Olam!" Lord of the World;

OF DKl WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 155

mixed up with that of the Tilrkomaun war-cry,
"Serenk!" Brave; or, " Bismillahe Arrahman Arra-
heem!" In the name of the most merciful God.
The Jews of Mowr, as well as those of Bokhara,
assure me that children of Israel of the tribe of
Naphtali and Zebulun, are in the Hindu Koosh
among the Balkhwee, and live from robbery ; and
they know the exclamation, " Shama Yisrael!"
" Hear, Israel." Ghengis Khan had a whole corps
of Jews among his troops.

Joseph of Talkhtoon, a Jew from Meshed, but
who lived among the Turkomauns at Talkhtoon, and
in the fame of sanctity, returned to Meshed as soon
as the event of Allah-Daad had taken place ; became
Muhammedan — took his wife and child — went to
Candahar, where he again returned to Judaism.

The Jews of Khiva, Khokand, and Tashkand
visit sometimes the following marts and fairs : those
of Makariev, Orenbourg, and Astrachan, in Russia ;
and go even as far as Leipsic, where they were
justly recognised as the remnants of the Ten Tribes
of Israel. The Jews of Khiva, Khokand, and Tash-
kand, and also those of Heraut, sent me word that
they had a great desire to see me in those places, in
order to speak with me about the coming of the
Messiah. Several Jews of Heraut spoke to me
with great regard about Majors Rawlinson, Todd,
and a certain Mr. Loggin, whom I have not the

156 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

pleasure to know. Singular to say, Sir Alexander
Burnes told the Jews of Cabul that I was dead.

Here also are found coins, with Arabic inscrip-
tions, of the time of Sultan Sanjaar, of whose riches
the Tiirkomauns speak wonders — of his silver thrones,
and of his hundred crowns of gold. He was once
defeated by the inhabitants of Khetay. He resided
at Merwe, and governed Khiva. He was at last
made prisoner by the people of Khetay ; he escaped.
Derveeshes till this moment relate in melodious
strains the deeds of Sanjaar.

The Tiirkomauns here I found, in spite of the
treaty with the Assaff-ood-Dowla, had killed, four-
teen days before our arrival, one of his messengers,
and made seventeen Persian slaves. The evening
before our departure from this place was the only
agreeable evening I passed in it. The Khaleefa
then supped with me, and I conversed with him till
midnight on the second coming of Jesus, and on the
clay of resurrection. As the Khaleefa had been
informed of the intention of the Tiirkomauns to
plunder the caravan, he and his eldest son accompa-
nied us two days through the desert towards Sarakhs,
and left us with the friendly tribe of Tekka.

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 157

CHAPTER XXII.

Tribe of Tekka. Route— Olugh Baba ; Sarakhs. Abbas Kouli Khan
ill-treated by the Turkomauns. The Turkomauns demand Robes
of Honour. Dr. Wolff is obliged to assume Madness to preserve
himself and Abbas Kouli Khan. Turkomauns demand Tribute
again. Taking of Sarakhs by Abbas Mirza in 1832. Khojam
Shokoor threatens to put the Caravan to Death. Arrival at Mostroon.
Nasarieh. Dil Assa Khan disgraced by the AssafF-ood-Dowla.
Gaskoon. Meshed. Dr. Wolff seized with Illness. Account of
Meshed ; its Rulers. Letter from Colonel Sheil, announcing a
Subscription to the Mission of three thousand Rupees from Captain
Eyre. Second Letter from same, announcing a Subscription for
the same Object from Cabul Relief Committee of ten thousand
Rupees. Dr. Wolff never received these Amounts. Letter from
Agra Bank, announcing further Subscription from the North-west
Provinces of India. Third Letter from Colonel Sheil. Assaff-ood-
Dowla takes Birjand. Earthquake at Kayen. Persian Agents not
trustworthy. Kind Reception at Meshed of Dr. Wolff by Hussein
Khan, Son of the Assaff-ood-Dowla. Hussein Khan wishes to
punish Dil Assa Khan. Dr. Wolff intercedes for him on account
of his Family. Dr. Wolff gets Abdullah bastinadoed and impri-
soned. Kindness of Mullah Mehdee to the English. Villany of a
German named Dieskau. Mirza Askeree, the Imaam Jumaa, calls
at Night on Dr. Wolff. Massacre of Allah-Daad. The Jew
Rahmeem. Dr. Wolff's Letter to the Jews of Meshed.

The tribe of Tekka, spoken of in the last chapter,
are more attached to the King of Organtsh than
to the Ameer of Bokhara, and therefore the people
of Mowr dared not pnrsne us here. It is also to
be remarked that the tribe of Tekka, with the
tribe of Toora Timnr, remained attached together
to the unfortunate Sultan Sanjaar, to the last.

158 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

One thing was unfortunate for me, that several
of the tribe of Tekka are in secret understanding
with Nayeb Abdul Samut Khan, so that if a time
should arrive that that villain will be obliged to
escape from Bokhara, he will find not only an
asylum among the Turkomauns of Tekka, but
also persons, especially one Khan Saat by name,
who will assist him in making his escape. These
Turkomauns of Tekka knew that Abdul Samut Khan
was my enemy.

We went from Tekka to another camp of the
same tribe, called Olugh Baba, and then arrived at
Sarakhs. Abbas Kouli Khan was so ill treated by
them that the poor man burst into tears, and said,
" If ever I am back to Persia, I will perform my
Siyarat (pilgrimage) to Kerbelay, to the tomb of
Imam Husseyn, and thence go to Mecca and
Medinah, and there remain with my wife and
child."

On our arrival at Sarakhs, the Turkomauns de-
manded from Abbas Kouli Khan and myself, Khelats
(robes of honour) . I had none to give, except those
belonging to Conolly, which he bought as presents
for chiefs, and which I gave them. Dil Assa Khan,
however, combined with Abdullah, and advised the
Turkomaun boys to hoot me and Abbas Kouli Khan.
As if struck by inspiration, I suddenly conceived the
brilliant idea of playing the madman, to prevent a

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 159

rush of the mob on us, and began to dance about and

sing the Persian song,

His fancy's wild, his mind distraught,
Who casts on God and Earth his thought.

Thinking me possessed, they called out, u This is

a Dehli" (a possessed derveesh), and quitted me in

terror.

Residence among these lawless tribes convinces
me more than ever that there cannot be worse des-
potism than the despotism of a mob. There is
nothing in my eyes more detestable and calamitous
than the attempt of a foolish and unpolished mob,
governed by maddening influences, to sway and
power. Virtue is repeatedly punished by them —
vice scarcely at all. Savage life, with me, has no
charms. I have always found the savage more
malicious, deceitful, and cruel, than the beings in
civilized life, whatever fine things may be said of
the virtues of the desert. What is the savage in
the abstract ? The fearful declension from a purer
type, not, as is erroneously supposed, the early
element of man.

Even at Sarakhs, though nominally under the pro-
tection of Persia, the Turkomauns detained us again
for several days, demanding tribute, which we were
obliged to give ; but here another circumstance of a
most annoying nature happened. The Ambassador
of the King of Bokhara to the court of Persia,

160 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

Sablian Ullah Beyk by name, in union with his
co- Ambassador for England, permitted some Tur-
komann chiefs to capture those slaves that had pur-
chased their liberty, and to again enslave them.
After a long discussion, they were outvoted by some
of the chiefs of the Turkomauns. I did not find
one single Turkomaun at Sarakhs of those who inha-
bited that place in 1832. On my way to Bokhara,
there were there some of my old acquaintances of
1832, but on my return they were all gone to Yola-
tan, near Mowr. Thus unsteady are the movements
of these tribes.

Abbas Mirza took Sarakhs in the following man-
ner, in 1832. He marched with his army towards it,
but sent word to the Turkomauns that he wished to
treat with them, and therefore they should send to
him their chiefs. The chiefs came. When he pre-
tended to be carrying on negotiations, he ordered the
chief portion of his army to advance, and His Royal
Highness himself soon followed. When he came
near the castle, a little rivulet obstructed his way.
General Borowsky, the Jew, advised Abbas Mirza to
divert the stream, which he did, and the castle was
taken, with the assistance of one thousand Russians,
by the address of Borowski. The greater part of
the Turkomauns were either slain in battle or made
slaves. Thus, for the first time, the Turkomauns
experienced the same calamity which they inflicted

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 161

on the Persians; for as they formerly made slaves of
the Persians in Khorassaun, Abbas Mirza, as a just
punishment, enslaved them in return. Previous to
the arrival of Abbas Mirza, the Khans, from covet-
ousness and policy, gave to any Turkomaun, who
happened to be made prisoner, his liberty, on paying
a small sum for his ransom. Thus Abbas Mirza was
the first who punished the robberies of the Turko-
mauns with just retribution. I cannot bear the Tur-
komauns ; they are a covetous, treacherous, and, at
the same time, stupid class of people. They have
not either the ability of the Arab or the Kurd. I
must also add that Mullah Mehdee, the Jew of Me-
shed, and the Jews of Sarakhs, were of essential
assistance to Abbas Mirza in his stratagems to delude
the TCirkomauns. I must also confess that I am sorry
that our Government withdrew the British force,
consisting of Captain Shee and five Serjeants, as soon
as Abbas Mirza marched against Sarakhs ; for what
advantage can accrue to the British Government
from befriending the Turkomauns at the expense of
amity with Persia. It is the same policy which was
formerly pursued by the European Powers with
regard to the Barbary States. I think it is time
that Christian Powers should pursue a line of policy
consistent with principles of morality, founded upon
the Gospel, and not follow measures founded on
mutual jealousy. Would to God the British Govern-
Vol. II. M

162 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

ment would appoint everywhere such men as Sir
Stratford Canning and Lord William Bentinck.

The most powerful Aga Sakal of the tribe of
Tekka at Sarakhs is Khojam Shokoor, who is allied
with the King of Khiva. He threatened to smite
with the edge of the sword the whole caravan, if
they did not give him tribute, after the other Turk-
omauns had taken it. The place is divided into those
who are allied with Bokhara, and others with Khiva.

We left that horrid place, and arrived at Mos-
troon. " Thank God !" we exclaimed, " we are on
Persian ground." Mostroon is situated upon an
eminence, with a castle erected there by the Assaff
ood-Dowla of Khorassaun, for the purpose of watch-
ing the movements of the Turkomauns, and to pre-
vent them from invading Khorassaun. Fifty soldiers
of the Merve tribe are placed there, with some pieces
of artillery. About ten minutes walk distance from
Mostroon is a hot well of most powerful mineral
water. If this place were in the hands of a European
power, a most beautiful Spa could be made of it.

From thence we proceeded to Nasarieh, a place
containing about twenty houses, and six farsangs
distant from Mostroon. It is inhabited by Mervee,
who were formerly on a good understanding with the
Turkomauns, and assisted them in making slaves in
Khorassaun; but the Assaff-ood-Dowla cut off the
heads of several of them, and then they thought

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 163

better of it, and gave up that trade. The villain
Dil Assa Khan was the Chief of the Mervee at Nasa-
rieh, but, on account of his treachery towards me,
the Assaff-ood-Dowla has deposed him. From Nasa-
rieh we proceeded to Gaskoon, a village of two
hundred houses, with a strong castle ; we slept there
one night. Mullah Mehdee, the Jew, came from
Meshed to welcome me.

We proceeded the next day towards Meshed, the
capital of Khorassaun. Many inhabitants came out
to meet me, and exclaimed, " Praise be to God
that you come back with your head from that
accursed city, Bokhara ! We have heard how
shamefully you have been treated by those scoun-
drels, Nayeb Abdul Samut Khan and Dil Assa
Khan. The Assaff-ood-Dowla has sworn by God,
the Prophet, and Ali, to burn the father and wife of
Dil Assa Khan !" Just on our entering Meshed the
Holy, I was taken with a most violent vomiting.
Before I enter into details about my reception at
Meshed the Holy, as it is called, I must give a
short sketch of that place.

Meshed was formerly called Toos. When Imam
Resa was poisoned by the son of Haroon Rasheed,
the place was called Meshed, i. e. the place of mar-
tyrdom ; it is the most celebrated place of pilgrimage
for the Sheeah. Muhammedans of that sect from
all parts come to perform their devotions at the

M 2

164 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

tomb of Imam Resa, over which a most splendid
mosque is built ; the cupola of it is entirely of gold.
It is visited every year by from twenty to thirty
thousand pilgrims. It is a great commercial town,
and caravans go from thence to Heraut, Candahar,
Bokhara, Isfahan, Teheraun, and Tabreez. The
town is under the King of Persia, but he has but
little influence there. It is not only the place of
burial of Imam Resa, but also of Haroon Rashid
and his son; also the great poet, Ferdousi, the
author of the Shah Nameh; and the great con-
queror, Muslem-Beyk, at whose tomb Timur per-
formed his devotions. It was conquered by Tamer-
lane, and the following personages are the real rulers
of the place :

1. Alloy er Khan, the Assaff-ood-Dowla, or Viceroy of
the Empire. He is uncle to His Majesty the King of Persia.

2. Mirza Askeree Imaum Jumaa, Head of the Mosque
of Imaum Resa, and Chief Mullah of the Town.

3. Mirza Moosa Khan, the Metualli, i. e. President of the
Mosque.

4. Mirza Haje Hashem, one of the Directors of the Prayer
at the Mosque.

5. Minister of the Police.

These direct all the internal affairs of and around
Meshed as far as Semnan. In order to give some
idea of the little influence the King of Persia has at
Meshed, I have simply to note that, after the mas-
sacre of the Jews had taken place at Meshed, the

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 165

King sent a commissioner with an order, that
the perpetrators of the crime should be delivered
and brought to Teheraun. This order was dis-
obeyed !

On my arrival I met Ali Muhammed Beyk,
Gholam of the British Embassy of Teheraun,
already there, with letters from Colonel Sheil for
myself, and also letters from India, that three thou-
sand rupees had been collected for me, which I never
received.

On this subject I subjoin the following kind
communication from Colonel Sheil :

My dear Dr. Wolff, Tehran, August 11th, 1844.

A messenger is on the point of going to Meshed, and
gives me time only to tell you that I have received a letter
from Captain Eyre, in which he informs me that three
thousand rupees are at your disposal.

You can draw on me for that amount; but I beg you
particularly to distinguish in your different bills on what
account it is you draw. This is necessary for my reimburse-
ment.

I have told Agha Abul Kassim to deliver to you this
letter on your arrival at Meshed ; for I cannot venture to
place you in danger by sending a letter to Bokhara.
"With best wishes, believe me,

Yours very truly,

Justin Sheil.

I cannot express my thanks for Lieutenant Eyre's
great kindness, for I refer to him, indirectly if not

166 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

directly, the following communication from Colonel
Shell:

Sir^ Tehran, June 1st, 1844.

I have the honour to forward to you a letter, which I
have received to your address from Captain D'Arcy, Secretary
to the Bombay Cabul Relief Fund Committee, placing at your
disposal, for certain purposes, the sum of ten thousand rupees
(10,000 Rs.). Your drafts upon me to the above amount, not
exceeding two thousand tomans (Ts. 2000), will receive the
attention requisite. And I have moreover requested Agha
Abul Kassim, a merchant at Meshed] with whom you are
acquainted, to afford you assistance in finding purchasers for
your bills, and to answer your bills on him. You should,
however, avoid drawing largely on this person without
previous communication, as his means may be inadequate to
the payment of considerable sums.

Should you draw upon me for the purposes mentioned by
Captain D'Arcy, I beg you will keep in distinct recollection
the necessity of stating, in the body of the bill, that it is
drawn on account of the Bombay Cabul Relief Fund Com-
mittee. An omission on this point will put me to much
inconvenience.

I also transmit to you a letter from the Secretary to the
General Committee Cabul Relief Fund, authorizing you to
draw upon the Sub-Committee for ten thousand rupees
(Rs. 10,000). I am inclined to conjecture that your bills on
that Association would not be saleable in Toorkestan, or
even at Meshed, and I am not aware that the Committee has
made any other adequate arrangement for their payment.
It is therefore, I suppose, requisite that in case of necessity,
you should draw bills on me for the above amount, not
exceeding two thousand tomans (Ts. 2000). And I have
also requested Agha Abul Kassim to afford you such assist-
ance as may be in his power in the disposal of your bills. I

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 167

shall write to the Secretary of the General Fund to make
arrangements for answering my counter bills.

Should you draw on me on this account, I shall be
equally obliged to you to state distinctly in the bill, that
it is on account of the General Cabul Belief Fund Com-
mittee.

I have forwarded these letters to Mullah Mehdee, your
agent at Meshed, directing him to transmit them to Merve,
to your servant Rejjeb. But I have told Mullah Mehdee
not to send these letters to Bokhara; for however useful it
might be that you should receive them in that city, I fear to
expose you to what I believe would be great danger, by
rendering you liable to the suspicions of the Ameer.
I have the honour to be, Sir,

Your most obedient humble servant,
Justin Sheil.

I think it right to add, that I have received
nothing from either of these Societies' funds, which
have possibly remitted the separate amounts to
England or Persia. Independent of these, I received
by the Agra Bank 129L 15s. 4d., remitted to my
bankers, Messrs. Drummond, of which I subjoin the
following document :

Agra and United Service Bank,
Sir, May 10th, 1844.

I have the pleasure to advise my having this day sent

to Messrs. Drummond and Company, Charing Cross, a bill

for 129Z. 1 5s. 4d., being amount of subscriptions of officers

and others in the North West Provinces of India, in aid of

the benevolent object you have undertaken.

At the suggestion of Captain V. Eyre, we have made

168 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

this sum payable to Colonel Sheil, on your behalf. He will,
no doubt, be able to advise with you as to the best mode of
realizing it.

I remain, Yours faithfully,

H. W. I. Wood,
Assistant Secretary for the Society.

To Colonel Sheil I feel deeply indebted for the
safe conveyance of all these notices, and for the
following cautious and well-timed epistle :

My dear Sir, June 16th, 1844.

As a matter of precaution, lest your detention at
Bokhara should be prolonged on other pretexts, I have
despatched a letter from the Shah to the Ameer regarding
you, to be forwarded, in the event of there being any
necessity, by the Asaf-ood-Dowlah, to Bokhara. I trust,
however, that this will not be required, and that you are
already within the Persian territory. It will be very satis-
factory to me to hear this intelligence, for until then I shall
not be free from anxiety on your account.

Believe me, my dear Sir,

Very truly yours,

Justin Sheil.

The Assaff-ood-Dowla was just gone to the
district of Kay en, in the city of Birjand, called also
by some travellers Burjund. Ameer Assaad Ullah
Khan, of Kay en or Burjund, was the only Khan who
refused submission to Abbas Mirza, and now to the
Assaff-ood-Dowla. The Assaff-ood-Dowla marched
against him whilst I was at Bokhara, and succeeded
in taking the whole district, and Burjund, the capital.

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 169

An earthquake also killed thousands of the people
of Kayen.

Now to give an idea of how little the Persians
can be trusted as agents, I have just to state the
following fact. Soon after my arrival at Meshed,
Aga Abool Kasem, — then the agent of Colonel Sheil,
— came to me. I was then with Mullah Mehdee, and
surrounded by a great number of Jews, or, as they
were now called by the Mussulmans, Islam Jadeeda,
New Mussulmans, as Jews in Spain, forced to be
Christians, are called Nuevi Cristiani, New Chris-
tians. Now Aga Abool Kasem brought with him a
Sayed, and introduced him to me as a man sent as a
secret agent by Colonel Sheil to watch the move-
ments of the Assaff-ood-Dowla. He told me also,
that his (the Sayed's) brother was sent by Colonel
Sheil to Kayen, to watch the Assaff-ood-Dowla there,
and report to him whenever the AssafF intended to
attack Heraut. He told me that he was a secret
agent of Colonel Sheil in the presence of twenty
Jews and many Mussulmans; and I know that he
was employed by Colonel Sheil.

The following circumstance must also not be
forgotten. One of the chief men of Yar Muhammed
Khan at Heraut, whose name I have forgotten, sent
a man to Colonel Sheil with some presents and a
letter. Colonel Sheil gave to the man a letter for
Yar Muhammed Khan's chief man, and a spy-glass

170 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

as a present. The messenger came to me, and
wished actually to sell to me the spy-glass consigned
to his care by Colonel Sheil to deliver it to the man
of Yar Muhammed Khan, called Mirza Nujuf Khan ;
and though the fellow had returned from Teheraun
to Meshed when I arrived at Meshed on my way to
Bokhara, he never proceeded to Heraut, but was
still at Meshed on my return, and never had deli-
vered either Colonel Sheil's letter or spy-glass.

As the Assaff-ood-Dowla was not there, his son
Hussein Khan received me very kindly, and delivered
to me a letter from his father, who made a thousand
apologies for having sent with me a man like Dil
Assa Khan, and desired me to order any punishment
which I liked to inflict upon him, and placed him
immediately in irons, but as Dil Assa Khan had a
wife and children, I interceded for him j but I got
instantly put into irons my servant Abdullah, bas-
tinadoed and sent to prison for forty days ; for he
threatened to come after me, and that he would not
rest until he had accomplished the pledge he gave
to Abdul Samut Khan, to put me to death, adding
these words : " God burn the father of Abbas Kouli
Khan, for his care and solicitude about the Kafir,
which prevented me from killing him on the road."

Though I had assigned a house to me by Hussein
Khan, the Governor, I stopped with Mullah Meh-
dee, who has always shown himself a friend to me

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 171

and all the English nation ; and this kind Jew was,
during the invasion of the English in Affghanistaun,
employed by Major Rawlinson at Candahar, and
Major Todd at Heraut, and suffered repeatedly for
his attachment to our people. In proof of it I
record the following fact.

A German from Hamburgh, named Dieskau,
came from India to Meshed, pretending to be an
English ambassador. Mullah Mehdee lent him
twelve hundred ducats, with which the rascal es-
caped. The fact is known to Sir John McNeill,
Colonel Farrant, and Colonel Sheil, and to the
Governor-General of India.

Mirza Askeree, the Imaum Jumaa, or chief of
the mosque, called on me in the night time, for I
was exceedingly unwell. He made me a present
of a turquoise ring. He said, " I was suspected by
Muhammed Shah (King of Persia) to be too partial
to England, and he therefore invited me to appear at
Teheraun. I obeyed the summons, but I could drive
out the Kajar, i. e. the present dynasty of Persia,
from Meshed whenever I please." I besought him
to protect the Jews, and not to allow the Muham-
medans to carry on against them a regular system
of inquisition. Mirza Askeree is very fond of mo-
ney, and after receiving a few tomauns from a
Jewish family, he allowed a considerable number of
them to emigrate to Heraut, Yazd, and Teheraun,

172 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

where they live again as Jews. How affecting it is
to look at the Jews of Meshed. I saw the poor old
women go about continually, exclaiming, "Allah-
Daad! Allah- Daad!" God has given! God has given!
the exclamation used by the Saved to excite the
populace to murder the Jews of Meshed.

On my second arrival I heard more fully the
history of the massacre of the Jews. The Jews for
centuries had settled there from the cities Casween,
Rasht, and Yazd. They were distinguished advan-
tageously by their cleanliness, industry, and taste
for Persian poetry. Many of them had actually
imbibed the system of the Persian Suffees. We
heard them, instead of singing the Hymns of Zion,
reciting in plaintive strains the poetry of Hafiz and
Ferdousi, and the writings of Masnawee. They had
accumulated great riches, and did not busy them-
selves in propitiating the authorities of Meshed by
occasional presents. Their wealth had long excited
the cupidity of the people of Meshed, who only
sought an opportunity to seize on their possessions.
The following occasion presented itself, which
enabled them to realize this object.

In the year 1838, the Muhammedans celebrated
the feast of Bairam. On that very day a Jewess
slaughtered a dog at the advice of a Mussulman
physician, for the purpose of washing with the blood
of the dog her own hands. One of the Mussulman

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 173

Sayeds, who heard it, and to whom the Jews pre-
viously had refused a present, called together all the
Mussulmans in the mosque of Imam Resa, and
addressed them in the following manner: "People of
Muhammed and Ali, the Jews have derided our feast
of Bairam by sacrificing on the very day of our feast
a dog. I shall now tell you in two words what must
be done. Allah-Daad" which means, God has given.
They took the allusion, and whilst the Assaff-ood-
Dowla, the Mirza Askeree, the Imaum Jumaa, and
the rest of the authorities, were sleeping, the whole
populace shouted " Allah-Daad," and with the
shout of Allah-Daad they rushed into the houses of
the Jews, slew thirty-five of them, robbed and plun-
dered their property, and the rest of them saved
their lives, but not their property, by reciting the
Muhammedan creed. Only a few of them preferred
death to apostacy. Mullah Daoud Cohen, the Chief
Rabbi and High Priest of the Jewish nation at
Meshed, gave the first example of apostacy. The
year in which this event happened still goes by the
name of Allah-Daad among both Jews and Muham-
medans. In secret they observe the Jewish reli-
gion, and tell their children not to forget the event
of Allah-Daad.

There is a Jew here, Rahmeem by name, whom
I knew in former times. He was not only learned
in Jewish learning, but also in Persian literature,
and rather given to the system of the Souffees.

174 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

When he saw the Jews massacred, and the shont of
" Allah-Daad " became universal, he turned Mu-
hammedan with the rest, but soon after was struck
with madness. The word of " Allah-Daad " struck
him with consternation; he tears his clothes, and
runs about in the streets, and the only word he
utters is " Allah Daad!" I asked him, "Rahmeem,
if I give you a suit of clothes, will you wear them ?"
" Yes." I gave him a suit of clothes ; the next
day he tore them into pieces, exclaiming, "Allah-
Daad ! When my mosque shall be built I will wear
clothing. Now Allah-Daad ! Allah-Daad!"

Whilst I was with the Jews at Meshed, the
time came that the Jews commemorate their day of
Atonement. The poor women and the old Jews
fasted in secret. The Mussulmans were informed
by those Jews who had been real apostates to the
Muhammedan faith, and who voluntarily embraced
that faith for the sake of convenience, previous to
the event of Allah-Daad, that the Jews converted in
the year of Allah-Daad were Jews in secret. Whilst
I was with them the servant of Mirza Sayd Askeree,
the Imaum Ajooma, entered the house of a Jew in
the evening time, in order to find out whether they
celebrate the day of Atonement. I was informed
of the fact, and sent him word to leave immediately
the house of the Jews^ which he did. The next
morning I wrote to the Imaum Ajooma a serious
letter, and gave him to understand, that most of

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 175

the European powers take an interest in the condi-
tion of the Jews, and told him that he would make
himself an immortal name if he would protect the
Jews ; which he promised to do. I wrote the fol-
lowing appeal to the Jews of Meshed, which was
copied by them, and sent by them to the Jews of
Heraut, Mazanderaun, Yazd, Hamadau, and others.
The appeal was as follows :

My dear Brethren,

I knew you fourteen years ago; a long' time before
the event of Allah-Daacl took place. You were kind to me,
and administered to me the rites of hospitality; and therefore
what I am going to tell you does not proceed from any
feeling of hostility and ill-will, but from a feeling of affection,
regard, and compassion towards you : and what I am going
to tell you is, that you had but little feeling for true reli-
gion— of that religion which teaches the Shah, the sage, and
the philosopher, to look up to the Creator, the Lord of the
world, with confidence, like a sucking child to the mother
while it rests upon her knees, — and which teaches the philo-
sopher to exclaim with child-like simplicity, Abba, Father!
You had little feeling for that religion which teaches us
that all around us is desert if our spirit does not look towards
heaven. You, like the Sooffees of the Persians, whom many
of you worshipped, studied history and nature without
reference to religion, unmindful that nature and history
are only enigmas, which can only be solved by the know-
ledge of true religion. You wallowed about in the sensual
poems of Hafiz, and Youssuf and Zuleika, and forgot
Moses and the Prophets. You were totally void of faith,
which is the element of all human knowledge and activity.
You despised Moses and the Prophets, and walked in the
ways of the Gentiles. God, therefore, gave you up to them

176 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

in his righteous indignation ; and those very people in whom
you placed your entire confidence, have been, as you told me
yourselves, the first who not only forsook you but plundered
you. Return, therefore, to the Lord your God, with weep-
ing, sorrow, and contrition of heart. Search the Scriptures,
which will lead you to Him who, though He was rejected
by the Jews as the brethren of Joseph rejected their bro-
ther, and as the children of Israel rejected Moses in the
beginning, — was nevertheless the son of David according
to the flesh, and the Jehovah our Righteousness according
to the Spirit. He was bruised for our iniquities, and
despised and rejected of men, and was cut off from the
land of the living; but, after there shall have been over-
turnings, overturnings, overturnings of empires, — He shall
bring you into the wilderness, and there He will plead with
you face to face, like as He pleaded with your fathers in
the wilderness of the land of Egypt. Those days of Egypt,
my dear friends, and the events which took place in those
days, are typical of those days and events which shall take
place when Jesus of Nazareth, who is the real son of David,
shall come the second time to redeem not only Israel, but
also accomplish all the promises to the Gentiles. Mighty
events shall soon take place; and you have already had a
forewarning of the sufferings which shall come upon you
in the event of Allah-Daad, until you shall look on Him
whom you have pierced, and mourn. Then you shall enter
into the Land of Promise; but you must repent first of
your sins, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted
out when the days of refreshing shall come from the pre-
sence of the Lord.

I advise you, however, in the first instance, to write to
Sir Moses Montefiore, who will give you every assistance
in his power, in order to bring you out of your present
distressed condition.

Joseph Wolff.

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 177

CHAPTER XXIII.

Dissent among the Mussulmans. Sayed asserts Pilgrimages to be unne-
cessary. Imaum Resa killed by Haroun Rashid. Muhammed Ali
Serraf calls on Dr. "Wolff; Dr. Wolff charges him with Neglect in
not delivering the Letters of Sir Moses Montefiore and the Sultan ;
Muhammed Ali Serraf shows a Letter from Colonel Sheil to justify
his Conduct. Date of the Execution of Colonel Stoddart and Cap-
tain Conolly. Argument for 1258 Hejirah; 1259 the right Date.
Dr. Wolff regrets that the Sufferings of the Officers should have
been so protracted, but cannot come, on reflection, to any other
Conclusion than 1259 Hejirah, 1843 A.D. Character of Colonel
Sheil. Evil of appointing Envoys that are not of the Established
Church. Singular Conduct of Colonel Sheil. Letter from the
Assaff-ood-Dowla. Christian Missions. Stations for them recom-
mended at Semnaan, Damghan, Nishapoor, Meshed, Hasrat-Sultan,
Tashkand, Shamay, Yarkand, Cashgar, Eele, Thibet, and Cash-
meer; not at present at Bokhara. Khokand, Cashmeer, Ladack,
and Lassa. Languages requisite : Arabic, Persian, Turkish, Chinese,
Hindustanee, Hebrew, and Kalmuck. Sciences and Arts. Conduct
required in a Missionary. The Character of a Missionary. Dialogue
between Dr. Wolff and a Sooffee. Ameer Beyk, the Daoodee.
Route— Askerea ; Shereef Abad ; Kadam-Gah ; Nishapore ; Sabz-
Awar. Curious Report circulated there, at the first Visit of Dr.
Wolff, that he was two hundred years old, and acquainted with all
the Sciences of the Earth. Visited the second time by Crowds who
conceived he had predicted the recent Earthquake. Route — Mas-
sanan ; Abbas Abad ; Miyandasht ; Miyamey. Dr. Cormick died at
Miyamey. Death of Abbas Mirza. Illness of Dr. Wolff. Con-
versation between Sabhan Ullah Khan and Dr. Wolff. Route —
Shah Rood; Deh-Mullah ; " Damghan ; Dowlat Abad; Aghwan;
Semnan ; Lasgird ; Deh Namak ; Pah-Deh ; Kish-Lagh. Arrival at
Teheraun. Hospitable Reception by Colonel Sheil. Monsieur Le
Comte Sartiges.

It is remarkable that dissenters in doctrine are
now prevailing largely in the Mnhammedan religion.
A Sa)7ed at Meshed began to teach that the Koran
Vol. II. N

178 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

was quite enough, and pilgrimages unnecessary.
This, in the great city of Imaum Resa, was extraordi-
nary doctrine. This Imaum Resa was the eighth of
the twelve Imaums descended from Muhammed.
He was killed at Meshed by the son of Haroun
Rashid, by a poisoned grape. Beside Imaum Resa,
there is here interred Aboo Mosleem, the fiercest of
all the conquerors of the Islam faith. A strong cry
of heresy was raised against this Saved, but Mirza
Askeree protected him. A fierce schism now pre-
vails among the Sheeahs at Meshed.

Muhammed AH Serraf, Colonel Stoddart's agent,
called on me again on my return. I reproached him
for not having forwarded the letters of Sir Moses
Montefiore and the Sultan from Colonel Sheil. He
showed me, for his own justification, a letter from
Colonel Sheil, in which he distinctly wrote to him
that he should not forward the letters by an express
messenger, but by some other opportunity. Colonel
Sheil must have had peculiar reasons for giving him
these instructions, of which I am .not aware. He
may have leaned to the conviction, that both Colonel
Stoddart and Captain Conolly were executed in the
year 1258 Hejirah, or A.D. 1842.

I shall now give further details of this date
question. Both the Nayeb and the King gave as
the date, Sarratan, 1259, and after I had sent away
the letter written to the Stoddart and Conollv Com-

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 179

mittee, by order of the King, in which this date
was mentioned, Nayeb Abdul Samut Khan repeated
again 1259 ; but counting the months since their
death brought it to twenty months instead of twelve.
He numbered them on beads, as all the Persians do.
I then said, a If twenty months have elapsed, the
event must have taken place in the year 1258,"
for 1260 had just begun. The Nayeb then, after
reflection, said with some hesitation, " Yes, you are
right, and both the King and I were mistaken." I
think it also fitting to add here, that I have my doubts
whether the Nayeb did not desire to confuse the
matter, for it may yet be a serious matter to him.
I then asked several at Bokhara about the date,
among others Saadat, and they gave 1258. Thus
much may be said in favour of 1258, and that was
my impression in my excited state at Teheraun.
But Haje Ibrahim, before my arrival at Bokhara, told
me distinctly that the letter of Lord Ellenborough
had arrived previous to the execution of Colonel
Stoddart and Captain Conolly. Now I counted
at Bokhara the date of Sir R. Shakspeare's note,
which accompanied Lord Ellenborough's letter,
and that note was written, I well remember, only
one year before my arrival. Now Haje Ibrahim
would not have said that Lord Ellenborough's letter
arrived before their execution, if it had not actually
been the case; and adding to this, that Abbas

N2

180 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

Kouli Khan, as will be seen after my leaving Te-
heraun, decidedly said to me that they had been put
to death only eleven months before my arrival ; and
besides that, the Assaff-ood-Dowla also, on my going
to Bokhara, told me the same thing ; it cannot be
denied that the year 1259 is the most probable, for
though the Nayeb had not delivered, as I fully
believe, the letter of Lord Ellenborough to the
King, he (the Nayeb) yet received it before their
death, and suppressed it from the fear of conse-
quences to himself.

I much wish I could revert to my old conclusion,
since it would be more satisfactory to the painful
feelings of many dear friends to learn, that the
misery of the unfortunate sufferers had not extended
over so protracted a period of time, that the ac-
count of the Akhund-Zadeh were exact; since to
reflect on two British officers, reduced to so horrible
a state that the flesh was gnawed from their bones
in large masses by vermin, with the fearful suffer-
ings, mental and bodily, that they must have under-
gone by the slow operation of the atrocious tyranny
practised upon them at the instigation of Abdul
Samut Khan, excites an intensity of feeling on my
part almost maddening, and cannot produce an
inferior feeling among those of their own flesh and
blood.

And here let me take the opportunity to add a

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 181

few words on the character of Colonel Sheil. He
is evidently a gallant and honourable officer, who
would serve his Queen with his blood; but his
reserved disposition must prove painful to many. I
once remarked this to the gentlemen of the Embassy :
u Colonel Sheil has not that pleasing communicative-
ness which is so conspicuous in Sir Stratford Can-
ning." The answer I received was, that " I ought to
consider that Sir Stratford Canning was Ambassador,
and Colonel Sheil only Charge d' Affaires." I am also
convinced that he will give protection to British
subjects, and to Protestants in general, as far as his
religious principles allow him, for he is a Roman
Catholic. As an instance, I mention the following
fact. The American missionaries, who have been
always under English protection, received the great-
est hospitality from Colonel Sheil, but when they
came in conflict with the Roman Catholic mission-
aries, though he believed the Protestant missionaries
to be in the right, he candidly told them that he
could not interfere, for he was a Roman Catholic.
This is one evil of appointing a minister of a dif-
ferent religious persuasion to that established in the
land ; an evil which the sagacity of the Archbishop
detected at the passing of the Emancipation Bill,
then stating that the Protestant missions must suffer
from it.

As an instance, I may mention also the following

182 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

fact, by which it will be seen that a Protestant
clergyman must suffer considerably, even among the
most liberal Roman Catholics, by such a circum-
stance. Colonel Sheil very liberally gave me per-
mission to preach in the Embassy, but he himself did
not attend. Now the impression raised among the
natives by this line of conduct is unfavourable to
Christianity, who either say the Vizier Muchtar has
no religion at all, or that he pays no regard to the
Mullah of his country.

It will always remain to me an enigma why
Colonel Sheil, though he admitted that Abdul Samut
Khan was a villain, and though he was unfavour-
ably impressed with the appearance of Haje Ibrahim
his brother, nevertheless would never enter into de-
tails about him, and when I recommended him to
get full information of the infamous character of
Abdul Samut Khan from Mirza Abdul Wahab, he
actually turned in a rude and insulting manner from
Abdul Wahab. My estimate of Colonel SheiPs
character will be fully established by every English-
man that knows him. His bilious maladies, how-
ever, and gout, must plead an apology for all this.
He also acted completely the reverse of Sir S. Can-
ning in the following affair. He knew fully, as well
by Abbas Kouli Khan as by myself, how villanously
I was treated by Dil Assa Khan, but he never for
one moment thought of getting me any redress, or of

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 183

punishing him through the medium of the Assaff-
ood-Dowla ; on the contrary, Sir S. Canning, when I
told His Excellency that the Ambassador who was
designed to accompany me to England from Bo-
khara had taken from me money and a shawl,
would have compelled him to restore everything had
I wished it.

I received, also, the following letter from the
AssafF-ood-Dowla :

To the mighty in rank, of high family, the fellow-
traveller of greatness and dignity, the chief of the great
personages of the Christian faith, and the cream of the illus-
trious (followers) of the Messiah, the unique of the times,
Padre Joseph Wolff; may he always he happy and delighted,
and gratified by obtaining his objects and desires.

Be it known, that from excess of friendship, I was most
anxious and desirous to see that great man ; and it so hap-
pened, that when he returned from Bokhara to the Holy
Land, I was not there, which was a source of regret and dis-
appointment to me, but since that mighty person came to
seek for peace and the increase of friendship and good under-
standing between both nations, I am much pleased and
delighted.

If it please God, that great person, after returning to the
seat of Government, will always write an account of himself
to me, as I am much gratified with his friendship. Salaam.

(Seal of Assqff-ood-Doivla.)

At this point of my travels I drew together the
following view of Christian Missions. During my
journey to Bokhara, I tried to ascertain where new
missionary stations might be established, and I believe

184 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

that if some Christian-minded physicians were sent
into Khorassaun, they might become eminently use-
ful, for, since the invasion of Affghanistaun by the
British army, the people of Khorassaun are rejoiced
when they see an Englishman. I was frequently
asked for copies of the Bible ; and in the cities of
Semnaan, Damghan, Nishapoor, and Meshed, I was
invited to open discussions about religion with the
chief mullahs. The chief mullahs of Meshed sent
actually presents of turquoises after me through
Colonel Sheil, when I had left the country. Writ-
ings published against Muhammedanism, by the late
missionary, Mr. Pfander, are read at Meshed and
Nishapoor with eagerness. I therefore would ad-
vise persons to send Christian physicians to Semnan,
Sharoot, and Meshed, to labour there among Mu-
hammedans; and Jewish missionaries ought to be
sent to the Jews of Mazanderaun. Dr. Thompson, at
Damascus, who is sometimes visited by three thou-
sand persons, as I was informed, has sufficiently
proved the utility of a Christian physician among
Muhammedans.

There are also, in Khorassaun, several mines, and
the Assaff-ood-Dowla wishes to obtain miners from
England. If, therefore, some persons of respecta-
bility, acquainted with mining, could be sent, they
would prove highly useful.

From Khorassaun, missionaries might easily ex-

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 185

tend their influence, accompanied by Jews, to the
deserts of Sarakhs, Merw, Akhal, and Khiva. Mis-
sionaries to Jews, as well as to Muhammedans, in the
cities of Khokand, Hasrat- Sultan, or Turkistaun,
and Tashkand, would be hospitably received; for
neither the Jews nor Muhammedans of those towns
are bigoted or intolerant. It is also remarkable that
in Shamay, in Chinese Tartary, a colony of Polish
Jews is found, amounting to three hundred families,
who would hail the arrival of English people with
delight, as I was assured by some of them whom I
met at Bokhara. Yarkand is another city where a
missionary to the Jews, as well as Muhammedans,
would be of the greatest use, and also Cashgar and
Eele. In the latter city, caravans from Russia de-
posit their merchandize. From Khokand, Tashkand,
Turkistaun, and Cashgar, Bibles might be sent into
Thibet and Cashmeer. The people of Thibet are
also partially acquainted with the art of printing ; if,
therefore, printers and lithographers were sent to
those parts, it might tend to further the promotion of
the Gospel of Christ.

The question will be asked, " Could a mission be
erected at Bokhara?" I reply, " Not under the
present Ameer, for he is too capricious a tyrant, and
though he has an ardent desire of knowing every-
thing, and gathers around him strangers, yet he does
not allow them free egress and regress." In conse-

186 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

quence, no respectable person will go there, and as
long as Abdul Samnt Khan is with him, Europeans
would certainly perish. However, the son of the
Ameer gives some hopes of being a better man than
his father ; on his accession to the throne a mission
may be established.

The following places would be the best adapted
for missions for Jews, Heathens, and Muhammedans :
Khokand, Cashmeer, Ladack, and Lassa. The fol-
lowing languages would be absolutely necessary:
Arabic, Persian, Turkish, Chinese, Hindustanese,
Hebrew, and the Kalmuck. The following sciences
and arts would be useful: medicine, astronomy,
sacred and profane history, watchmaking and engi-
neering. Missionaries might also make excursions
from the above-mentioned places to the Kasaks,
Ghirgese, Kafir Seeah Poosh, and to the tribes of
Naphtali and Ashur, in the Hindu-Cush.

I think that a missionary in these countries should
put on the garb of a derveesh, and take a cottage
outside the town, when thousands would crowd
around him to hear his wisdom. He must use hospi-
tality, bring forth to the stranger bread and sherbet,
pour rose-wrater on his head, present him with a rose,
and delight him with the song of the nightingale.
If he is distant in manner, no soul will come near
him. They ought to be missionaries like Schauffler,
Goodell, D wight, Benjamin, Peabody, Bliss, Dr.

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 187

Grant, Dr. Wilson, and Duff. For though I essen-
tially differ with those gentlemen with regard to
Church government, I highly esteem their zeal, judg-
ment, kindheartedness, and perseverance. They are
men not only willing to learn, but also to teach. Or
if missionaries of the Episcopal Church be sent, they
ought to be like my late lamented friend, the Rev.
Mr. Leeves, Chaplain of Athens, or the Rev. Mr.
Hill, American Episcopal Missionary at Athens.

A Sooffee called on me, and said, "Youssuff
Wolff, do you think that religion is necessary to a
wise man ?" I replied, " My dear friend, he only is
a wise man who feels and is convinced that religion
is the only means of giving support to helpless
nature ; and all the sages of every age have taught
us, with one consent, that knowledge which has only
for its object terrestrial things is not worthy of that
name. And understand, that God manifests himself
to the heart, and hides Himself from those who seek
Him with their reason only. Faith, and obedience
to God's laws, are wings of the soul, by which it is
able to soar up to God's presence ; and whenever
human nature decays and degenerates, divine know-
ledge disappears."

Sooffee. What do you think of our Prophet Mu-
hammed, and of his religion ?

W. Muhammed is a Prophet without miracles,
and therefore a false one. His system is a faith

188 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

without mysteries, and therefore not a divine one ;
and a morality without love, and therefore a devilish
morality. Christianity takes hold of the heart, in
order to make it better; Muhammedanism takes
hold of the heart, in order to make it worse.

After we had stopped at Meshed for twenty-one
days, another Gholam arrived for me with letters
from Colonel Sheil.

The name of that Gholam was Ameer Beyk, who,
in the year 1838, was seized by the Turkomauns
in carrying dispatches for Sir John McNeil from
Colonel Stoddart, at Heraut. He tried to escape
twice from Khiva ; the second time he was brought
back, and had his ears cropped close to his head. He
was afterwards purchased by Abbot, and he enjoys a
pension from the British Government for the loss of
his ears. He is not a Muhammedan, but a Daoodee,
i. e. of a sect who believe that King David was a
God. He was of very great use to me. We set out,
together with Abbas Kouli Khan, the two Bokhara
Ambassadors, and Mullah Mehdee the Jew, for
Teheraun. The Jews of Meshed and many Muham-
medans accompanied me out of town.

We stopped the first day at Askerea, a village
belonging to Mirza Askeree, the Imam Ajooma of
Meshed. It contains about twenty houses, and is
about five English miles from Meshed.

From thence we proceeded to Shereef-Abad, a

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 189

place where, fourteen years ago, I was obliged to
remain for several days, on account of the wandering
Hazarah, a Mogul tribe who reside near Heraut, and
invaded at that time Khorassaun, in order to make
slaves. Now Shereef-Abad contains about twenty
houses, and is situated between two mountains, and
is very cold. A messenger came there from the
Assaff-ood-Dowla to welcome me, and made me a
present of a shawl. The two Ambassadors from
Bokhara — the one who was to accompany me to
England, and the other who was sent to Muhammed
Shah — were quite surprised that the Assaff paid to
me such attention. From Shereef-Abad we conti-
nued our journey to Kadam-Gah, which means,
Place of the Foot, — for the foot-print of Imam Resa,
the patron saint of Meshed and Khorassaun, is still
pointed out there ; and it is therefore a famous place
of pilgrimage for the Muhammedans. The inhabit-
ants of that place are descendants of the family of
Muhammed; and therefore they cannot be forced
by Government to entertain a stranger; but they
treated me both times with great respect and hos-
pitality, and many of them wished me to send to
them the Gospel. Several of them asked me seri-
ously, " When will the English come and take this
country ?"

Kadam-Gah contains also a strong castle. From
Kadam-Gah we arrived at Nishapore, twenty miles

190 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

distant from the former place, considered, after
Balkh, in their traditions, the most ancient town
in the world, and was formerly the place of resi-
dency of the King. There are several iron mines
to be found. It was destroyed by Tamerlane. It
contains numerous mines, and the surrounding coun-
try is most lovely:

We proceeded thence to Sabz-Awar, which con-
tains about six thousand inhabitants, and a good many
shops. When I was there on my way to Bokhara, a
rumour was spread that I was two hundred years of
age, and acquainted with all the sciences upon earth;
so that the whole town naturally rushed out to look
on such a prodigy. When I told them that I was
only forty-eight, they declared me to be a great liar.
However, on my second arrival, I was again visited
by crowds of Mussulmans, among whom was a chief
mullah, who considered me to be a Prophet, for I
told him on my way to Bokhara, that, previous to the
coming of our Lord Jesus, there would be earth-
quakes in Khorassaun and all over the world. And
as a terrible earthquake — of which I have given a
description — actually happened, it was considered as
a part of my prediction. Even some of them de-
clared me to be Baba Elias, a celebrated derveesh.
I contradicted none of these rumours, for it is useless
to attempt it. Khorassaun rings with the praises of
Sir John Mc Neill and Sir John Campbell.

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 191

From Sabz-Awar we proceeded to Massanan.
which has a fine caravanseray, built by Shah Abbas.
It has excellent wells, and is highly cultivated.
They have there several guns, on account of the
Turkomauns, whenever they come from Astarabad
to make Chapow.

Thence we passed to Abbas- Abad, inhabited by
descendants of Georgians, brought there from Tiflis
by Shah Abbas. They have many privileges pecu-
liar to the place, confirmed by firmauns from Shah
Abbas, Nadir Shah, Abbas Mirza, and Muhammed
Shah. They profess now the Muhammedan religion,
except fifteen families of them, who are, in secret,
Christians.

We then proceeded to Miyandasht, a little place
built by the present King of Persia ; and from thence
to Miyamey, a beautiful caravanseray. Here Dr.
Cormick died, who was an Irish gentleman, and
favourite physician to Abbas Mirza. He was an
excellent but eccentric man. He was married to a
Georgian by the famous Henry Martin, and, strange
to say, never acknowledged it ; but after his death,
his wife produced a certificate from Henry Martin,
proving that she was married to him. Dr. Cormick
resided at Tabreez with Abbas Mirza. When Abbas
Mirza marched toward Khorassaun, he left Dr. Cor-
mick at Tabreez ; but when the Prince saw that his
stay in Khorassaun would be prolonged, he wrote to

192 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

Dr. Cormick to join him. He obeyed ; but arriving
at Miyamey, he was seized with a violent fever,
which killed him in twelve hours. He left about
twenty thousand pounds for his wife and children.
When Abbas Mirza was informed of the death of his
medical friend, he said, " Now all is over with me —
I shall soon follow ;" and His Royal Highness died
a few weeks after.

During our journey on to Teheraun, Sabhan
Ullah Khan, Ambassador of the King of Bokhara to
Muhammed Shah, came every day to me, for I had
taken up my quarters at a distance from the rest,
being too much indisposed to see any one. My mind
was overpowered with despondency and melancholy.
I was bled almost every other day, and took a
medicine which they have in Khorassaun called
Sheer- khishk, a kind of powerful manna. I scarcely
had strength enough to talk. Sabhan Ullah Khan
came every day to see me, and on one occasion
he spoke to me in the following manner : " I can
assure you also of what the Kazi Kelaun has told
you, and I know it, that Stoddart and Conolly were
put to death at the instigation of Abdul Samut Khan.
He was the mediator between Hasrat and them."

I arrived next at Shah-Rood, River of the King.
Stoddart's name is well remembered here. They
call him the Rasheed, the Brave Man.

Our next point was Deh-Mullah, one of Sultan

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 193

Mahmoud's villages; but it has beautiful gardens.
Thence we passed to Damghan, a most ancient town
in great part ruinous. There are poisonous bugs
here which kill strangers. We then reached Dow-
lat-Abad and Aghwan, and at last Semnan, where a
room was given to me in the palace of the Prince
Governor, who was absent at the time of my visit.
These beautiful palaces sink here to ruin, for as
the Governors do not know how long they may be
allowed to remain, they think it scarcely worth
while to improve their dwellings. Jews from Ma-
zander aun called on me here. They are better off
than in other parts of Persia, and the Persians relate
of the Jews of Mazanderaun, that they are almost
better off than the Muhammedans, for they blacken
twice a day their beards with henna.

We arrived next at Lasgird, a place with a most
ancient castle, said to be built by the Deevs (fairies).
Thence to Deh Namak, Pah-Deh, and Kish-Lagh,
where I met a horse sent after me by Colonel Sheil,
and soon after the excellent Mr. Read came to wel-
come me, and Mr. Karapet, an Armenian, who was
the apothecary in the British Residency ; and at last
we arrived at Teheraun, where I met with a hospi-
table reception by Colonel Sheil, the British Envoy.

I also met there with Messrs. Thomson and
Glen, the Attaches to the Embassy, and Mr. Abbot,
the British Consul. As the King and His Majesty's

Vol. II. O

194 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

Prime Minister were going ont hunting, Colonel
Sheil and the Attaches accompanied them, whilst 1
remained at the Embassy and received the visit
of Monsieur le Comte Sartiges, Charge d' Affaires to
the King of the French, who was sent there in order
to effect the reinstatement of the Lazarists in Persia.
I spoke to him, that he should write in my name to
the King of the French, that I ardently wished that
France should join England in the endeavour of
effecting the liberation of the two hundred thousand
Persian slaves in Bokhara. He also told me that it
was considered great courage on my part to address
a letter to all the European Powers from the city of
Bokhara in behalf of the slaves. I also received a
visit from the French Lazariste, Monsieur Ousel,
who appeared to me to be a very zealous man. The
Lazaristes were established by that ardent philan-
thropist Vincent de Paul, who sighed in slavery at
Tunis, whence he escaped with his master, whom he
had converted to the Christian faith. Monsieur
Chisel intends to establish his mission at Teheraun,
or Ispahan.

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 195

CHAPTER XXIV.

Dr. Wolff preaches at the Embassy. Noble Conduct of Count Medem.
Colonel Sheil refuses to return the Letter of Lord Ellenborough.
Kindness of the Russian Embassy. Khosrow Khan. Dr. Wolff
writes to the Ameer. Reception by the Shah. Dr. Wolff thanks
His Majesty for his Life. His Life twice preserved by the Court
of Persia. Autograph of the Shah. Mullah Bahrain, the Gueber.
Colonel Sheil demands the Date of the Execution of Colonel Stod-
dart and Captain" Conolly; Dr. Wolff gives 1258 Hejirah: Abbas
Kouli Khan thinks it was 1259. Dr. Wolff, on further reflection,
coincides with Abbas Kouli Khan. Persia could not under existing
circumstances take Bokhara. Mirza Abdul Wahab. Letter of Abbas
Kouli Khan to Lady Georgiana Wolff. Kindness of the Embassy
to rDr. Wolff. Armenian Church. Recourse had to the Russian
Embassy, and not to the British, by the Protestant Missionaries.
Count Medem visits Abbas Kouli Khan, and thanks him for his
Kindness to Dr. Wolff. Visit of Dr. Wolff to the Haje, the Prime
Minister of the Shah; their Conversation. Haje Ibrahim demands
six thousand Tillahs; Dr. Wolff takes an Oath that he never
received this Sum ; Dr. Wolff pays him three thousand Tillahs,
and draws on Captain Grover for four hundred Pounds. Haje
Ibrahim claims three thousand Tillahs as due from Conolly ; Dr.
Wolff protests against this Payment, and thinks Colonel Sheil
ought to have refused to pay Haje Ibrahim' anything for either
Dr. Wolff or Captain Conolly. Inexplicable Conduct of Colonel
Sheil. Letter from the Queen to the King of Bokhara. Visit to
Haje Baba.

Now I may write again dates, for, having arrived
at Teheraun, which is the Rages of Tobit, I was
informed that it was the 3rd of November. On the
4th of November, Colonel Sheil allowed me to
preach in the Embassy, though he himself, being a
Roman Catholic, did not come.

O 2

196 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

Count Medem, the Russian Ambassador, behaved
most nobly towards me. He not only invited me to
preach in his house in German, on which occa-
sion His Excellency and all his Attaches attended ;
but he also made me a present of two shawls, and
gave me a public dinner, to which he invited Colonel
Sheil, all the British Attaches, Count Sartiges, Abbas
Kouli Khan, Monsieur Labat, the King's Physician,
&c. ; and during my stay at Bokhara, he wrote to
Count Nesselrode about me. Count Sartiges gave
also a public dinner to me, to which he invited the
British Embassy.

I must here remark, that, having been very un-
well at Meshed, I sent on before me to Colonel Sheil
Lord Ellenborough's letter, given to me by the Ameer
of Bokhara, and other documents from Conolly to
the Ameer. A few days after my arrival at Tehe-
raun, when Colonel Sheil came back from the sport-
ing expedition, and he was in his office, I wrote to
him from my room, on a piece of paper:

Dear Sir,

Would you be kind enough to give me back Lord
Ellenborough's letter, and the other documents of Conolly.

And sent the note by his servant, to which he wrote
in his own hand writing, upon a piece of paper,
the following answer, which I have still in my
possession :

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 397

Lord Ellenborough's letter is the property of Govern-
ment, as well as all other official documents.

As I dislike to create any dissension, I of course
submitted to his judgment ; and, beside this, I did
not wish to be embroiled with the Government at
home. I cannot also but remark, that the kindness
shown to me by the Russian Ambassador at Tehe-
raun, was unbounded ; so much so', that even Mullah
Mehdee, the Jew, and persons in authority at Tehe-
raun, observed that " The Russians are by far kinder
to you than your own people, the English." I have
good authority to say that, had I been a Russian
subject, the Russian Government would not have
suffered me to pay one farthing to Abdul Samut
Khan's brother.

But Colonel Sheil, beside that, did not send for-
ward to Captain Grover the note of Sir R. Shake-
speare which accompanied Lord Ellenborough's
letter.

I have already mentioned that I had a friend
at Teheraun, whose name is Khosrow Khan, chief
eunuch to Futt Ali Shah. He occupied several high
functions under that monarch, as, for instance, the
place of Governor of Ispahan, and at another time
Geelaun; but now, being out of favour with the Haje,
is out of favour with the King. On my first arrival at
Teheraun, he called on me, but as Colonel Sheil did
not come to see him in my room, he refused to call

198 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

on my second visit, and therefore I called on him.
He is, like all the Georgians, secretly attached to
the Christian religion, but he is somewhat of a Swe-
denborgian. He always affects to see some saint
of olden time. When I last saw him, he told me
with great earnestness that he had lately seen, and
even conversed with, Samuel the Prophet, who had
a little beard, completely white, and beautiful blue
eyes, and that he was a man of powerful figure, but
low. He also saw Moses, who had a most powerful
voice, and had a great resemblance in his outward
appearance to the late King, Futt Ali Shah. He
never smiled, he said, and was greatly incensed at
the ingratitude of the Jews towards him.

I took the opportunity while here of writing a
full account to the Ameer of Bokhara, of my notions
of his own conduct, and a complete exposure of the
villany of Abdul Samut Khan.

My reception by the Shah was most gracious.
When I entered the presence of the Shah, intro-
duced by Mr. Thomson, he smilingly said, "Now
you have enough of Bokhara : you will not go again
to that city in a hurry." I replied, " Twice have I
been saved from danger by the gracious assistance
of the Persian Government. Twelve years ago,
from the hands of Muhammed Khan Kerahe, by
Your Majesty's father, and from the Ameer of Bo-
khara by Your Majesty." He then asked me why

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA.

199

I had cut off my beard? I told His Majesty that
it had given me too much trouble, on which he
laughed heartily. I also requested His Majesty
to give me his autograph, upon which he wrote the
following lines, of which I give the autograph and
translation.

Autograph of His Majesty the King of Persia.

(Given to the Rev. Dr. Wolff, after his return from Bokhara to
Teheraun, 30th October, 1844.)

v*.

O^ iffi £

200 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

This is the translation which Mr. Thomson made
for me :

Translation of an Autograph of Muhammed Shah.

Praise be to God, Mr. Wolff is rescued, and may he go in

safety to London to his wife.

Verse.

Two friends know each other's worth when

their intercourse has been interrupted for

some time, and they again meet.

The month of Shevval, 1260 of the Hejireh.
Written by the Shah of Persia, and presented to Dr.
Wolff, at his audience on his return from Bokhara.

Mullah Bahram, the chief of the Guebers, and
who managed all matters for my departure twelve
years ago, called on me. He told me that the Haje
Mirza Aghasee was a great friend to the Guebers,
and had built them a village, four miles from
Teheraun, of which he had made him overseer.

On my arrival, Colonel Sheil asked me whether
Colonel Stoddart and Captain Conolly had been
put to death in 1259 of the Hejirah, or 1258. I
told him that the Nayeb had said 1259, but that
twenty months had elapsed between the time of
my arrival and their execution. I told him on a
second occasion, that according to this calculation
the execution was in 1258, to which he agreed.
Others also said at Bokhara that it was 1258.
Colonel Sheil desired me to give him a statement
to that effect in writing, which I did.

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 201

On leaving, however, for Tabreez, Abbas Kouli
Khan and myself had some conversation on this
subject, and he then said, " I made most accurate
inquiries, pursuant to my official instructions. You
may depend upon it that the information I have
obtained about their execution is more correct than
your own. Stoddart and Conolly were put to death
eleven months before your arrival." He then em-
phatically added, " They were put to death, as the
Nayeb told you at the first, in the year 1259, and
not 1258." And as it is certain that Shakspeare's
note, with the letter of Lord Ellenborough, arrived
before their execution, the information of Abbas
Kouli Khan, and the first official statement of the
King and Abdul Samut Khan, is correct. I there-
fore regretted that I gave the paper to Colonel Sheil,
which should not have been demanded from me when
I was in a state of the greatest excitement, ill and
miserable, and attended by Dr. Kade, the physician
of the Russian Embassy.

It may be asked, If Persia proceeds to Bokhara
alone, without the assistance of either Russia or
England, will she take Bokhara ? My reply is, Her
success is very doubtful, for the following reasons.
First, it could only be effectually done by an order
and full power given to the Assaff-ood-Dowla, but
the Assaff-ood-Dowla and the Haje Mirza Agasee

202 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

are deadly enemies, and each jealous of the other ;
so that they would counteract each other, as they did
during the siege of Heraut. Besides this, the officers
themselves are very jealous of each other. They
would agree to no general combined plan, and
therefore they would mutually betray each other's
plans to the Ameer of Bokhara. Also Muhammed
Shah is afraid of the Assaff-ood-Dowla, and I know
for a certainty, upon the best authority, that the
King has a most well-founded suspicion that the
Assaff-ood-Dowla entertains the design of making
himself, if not King of all Persia, at least of Kho-
rassaun.

I must here observe, that I paid at Teheraun
thirty tomauns to Mirza Abdul Wahab, the painter,
for his work for me. For though the Nayeb in-
cluded him in his account, he had not in reality
given him one single farthing.

I must here repeat, that the kindness of Count
Medem, the Russian ambassador, can never be ob-
literated from my memory. He gave a public
dinner on my arrival, to which he invited Colonel
Sheil, the entire British Embassy, and Abbas Kouli
Khan. Abbas Kouli Khan also made me a present
of two Cashmeer shawls for Lady Georgiana. He
also sent to her the following kind and truly Eastern
letter.

Xcrza, Jbdul Wed

iJBBAS M>OTE ML£Jf.

PERSIAN AMBASSADOR TO BOKHARA.

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 203

Translation of a Letter from the Persian Envoy to Bokhara
to the Lady Georgiana Wolff.

May my exalted and esteemed sister, whose station
is as that of Bilbeis (Queen of Sheba), the respected and
dear lady of my friend and brother, the Reverend Joseph
Wolff, enjoy good health. Five months ago, according to
the desire of His Excellency the Doctor, I addressed a
letter to you, my esteemed sister, and I assured you that
I would bring with me, with honour and respect, and in
perfect safety, my friend and brother the Doctor. Praise be
to God, praise be to God, praise be to God, eight days
previous to the date of this, which is the 16th Shevval,
I brought him to Teheraun. I give praise and I am thankful
to God, that I have had no cause to be ashamed before you,
my sister. The gentleman will himself, please God, arrive
soon in London, and he will acquaint you, my sister, ver-
bally, with what has occurred. You will then perceive how
I have acted as a brother. I hope that you, my respected
sister, will not forget me. May your letters always reach
me in Persia.

(Signed) Abbas Kouli Khan, Koord,

Sirteeb ( Colonel).
16th Shevval, 1260.

„ Count Medem invited me to preach in his house,
as I have said, in German, before the entire Russian
Embassy, proffered pecuniary assistance, which I
declined, to send on his own Gholam to Tabreez,
and recommended me to all the Russian authorities
and to his Imperial Master. However, I must say
that Mr. Thomson and the excellent Mr. Read were
exceedingly kind to me, as well as Mrs. Read; and
I must also say, that Messrs. Thomson, Glen, and

204 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

Abbott rendered me every assistance in their
power.

I now proceed to speak of the Armenians.
Hoannes Surrenno Krimetzki, Archbishop of Julfa,
Hindustaun, and Teheraun, called on me, covered
with Russian orders. He is a venerable old gentle-
man, and anxious to improve the Armenian nation.
He has established a school at Julfa, where the
Armenian boys are instructed in the English, French,
and Armenian tongues. He receives contributions
for that purpose from Russia, Armenia, and from
the Armenians of Hindustaun and Yava. "I was
frequently advised to send Armenian youths to Eng-
land and France," he observed; "but the danger
iu sending them there is: 1st, that they forget
their own language; 2nd, they become spoiled by
good living ; and then return discontented with their
own country. I thought it therefore more advisable
to instruct them in their own country in foreign sci-
ences, where, at the same time, they do not forget
their own language, and put up with the hardships
of their countrymen."

The Eastern churches have deacons in the most
scriptural sense of the word, for they are chosen by
the people, consecrated by the bishops, and they are
seldom allowed to preach, but have simply to raise
alms, to provide for the poor and sick, and to make
arrangements for the internal management of the

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 205

churches. This occupation of the deacons is obvi-
ously derived by the Apostles from the Jewish syna-
gogue. I must also observe, that there is far greater
liberality and licence in preaching in the Eastern
and Roman Catholic churches than in the British.
It is a fact, that, in the Eastern, as well as Roman
Catholic communities, simple laymen, without ordi-
nation at all, are allowed to preach in the church,
with the especial licence of the bishop. Thus, for
example, Ignatius Loyola, and the Jesuits, preached
without ordination, on the simple permission of the
Pope.

It must be observed, that Count Medem gives
most efficient protection to the Armenians through-
out Persia, and also to the Chaldeans, residing in
Oroomiah ; and when the Chaldean Nestorians of
that place were oppressed by the Roman Catholic
missionaries, he put a stop to it. The Protestant
missionaries of Oroomiah are also protected, and
they recur to the Russian Embassy for protection in
case of need. Formerly they had recourse to the
British Embassy.

I was delighted to perceive that Count Medem
called instantly on Abbas Kouli Khan, thanked him
for his kindness to me, and invited him to dinner.
I cannot avoid saying, that Mr. and Mrs. Read,
whom I knew in Persia fourteen years previous,
form the very life of the Embassy, which would be

206 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

dulness itself without them. I must not omit to
mention the kindness of General Semino; he is
alluded to before in this work.

I also called on the Haje, and thanked him. He
told me that it would have been well if I had waited
according to his advice at Teheraun, until Abbas
Kouli Khan had reached me there; for my protection
would have been stronger — my suffering less. This
Persian Wolsey is very fond, as our own was, of build-
ing palaces and also villages. When the former Am-
bassador from Bokhara left Teheraun, he sent word
to the Ameer : " How can the Ameer dream of making-
war with Khiva ? Khiva belongs to me!" He evi-
dently does not like the English ; and he once made
the following observation to an English gentleman,
whose name I forbear to mention : " I know your
English fashion. You first of all send a physician
to a country to feel our pulse, and afterwards a sur-
geon to bleed us to death ; and then officers follow,
and they dispose of our land as the others have done
of our bodies."

Previous to my departure, Haje Ibrahim, brother
to Abdul Samut Khan, arrived for the six thousand
tillahs. I took an oath that I never received three
thousand tillahs of this amount ; and though of the
three thousand tillahs entrusted to me, above six
hundred were partly stolen on the road, and partly
went on account of the Nayeb's camels, as above

OP DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 207

mentioned, I repaid him the whole of the three thou-
sand ; to do which I was obliged to draw four hun-
dred pounds on my dear and excellent friend,
Captain Grover. Haje Ibrahim also applied for the
three thousand tillahs of Conolly ; but against this I
put in my protest, and I have it on the highest au-
thority, that, had I been under the Russian flag, I
should not have been called on to pay Haje Ibrahim
one single farthing, and I might have got, as an
indemnification, the whole of the sum entrusted to
me by Abdul Samut Khan, as I was through his
instigation imprisoned in Bokhara, and ill treated on
the road. And Persians, as well as other personages
of high importance, were surprised that Colonel
Sheil did not insist upon the arrest of Haje Ibrahim,
in order to hear all even the minutest circumstances
of the execution of Colonel Stoddart and Captain
Conolly, in which dark transaction Haje Ibrahim
was deeply involved. Instead of which, Colonel
Sheil suffered that villain to annoy me in my
room, demanding twenty per cent, for the money,
until I took him by the throat and turned him
out. Ill, miserable, bilious, and excited, I still
bore up against all; but these things soon had
issue in a dangerous and delirious illness on my
arrival at Tabreez, in the house of the excellent
Mr. Bonham. But of this more hereafter. I have
only here to add, that if Government pays the

208 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

debt of Conolly to Abdul Samut Khan, they will
pay a premium to that villain for the murder of
other Englishmen, and for the robbery of their
fellow-citizens.

One thing- appeared to me very extraordinary;
that Colonel Sheil said to me, in the presence of
Mr. Glen and Mr. Thomson, that he would recom-
mend Government to pay to Abdul Samut Khan,
one hundred tillahs for the letter of Lord Ellen-
borough. I asked why ? For according to Shakes-
peare's note, the one hundred tillahs were to be
paid to the bearer after he had brought an answer
from the Ameer to the Governor-General. Now,
not only was no answer given, but, as shown above,
the letter was not delivered to the Ameer until
after my arrival. I here say, such conduct is utterly
inexplicable.

I met at Teheraun Mr. L'Abbe Chisel, of the
Lazarist order, who was sent as missionary to
Persia by the Propaganda. He seems to me a man
of zeal and piety.

I told Colonel Sheil, one day, that a letter had
arrived from Her Majesty Queen Victoria, and in-
quired why the King of Bokhara had not received it.
All the answer I received from Colonel Sheil, in the
presence of Mr. Thomson, was, " You are not at
liberty to say that a letter has come from Her
Majesty or not."

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 209

Before quitting Teheraun, I called on Mirza
Abul Hassan Khan, the Haje Baba of Morier, and
the Secretary for Foreign Affairs to the Court of
Persia. Haje, though looking older, is cheerfulness
itself.

Vol. II.

210 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

CHAPTER XXV.

Departure from Teheraun. Route— Kand ; Sunghur-Abad ; Sepher-
Khoja. Meeting here with Assaad Ullah Beyk. Route — Cas-
ween; Sultanieh; Sanjoon ; Gul Teppa. Illness of Dr. Wolff.
Kind Reception of Dr. Wolff at Tabreez by Mr. Bonham ; his
Treatment by Dr. Casolani. Mr. Osroff and the Russian Legation.
Introduction of Dr. Wolff by Mr. Bonham to Prince Bahman Mirza.
The Prince presents Dr. Wolff with a valuable Emerald Ring.
Letter of Prince Bahman Mirza. Russian Inhabitants of Tabreez
consider it disgraceful to the British Government to permit the
Stoddart and Conolly Affair to rest in its present position. Extracts
showing the exact Position of these Diplomatic Agents. First,
from Captain I. Conolly, Brother to the murdered Captain Conolly;
Second, Extracts from the Correspondence of Colonel Stoddart.
Impolicy of Non-interference. Holy Places visited by Persians.
Dispute between Turks and Persians on Frontier Question. Colonel
Taylor and Major Rawlinson. Disciples of John the Baptist ; their
singular History; their Report of themselves that they are De-
scendants of the Chaldeans and of the Brothers of Abraham. Triple
Name of God. Baptism of John in the Wilderness. Two kinds of
Priests ; one the Representative of the Baptist, the other of the Christ.
Their Book, the Sadra Raba ; reported Authors of it, Seth and
John the Baptist ; their Residences. Fruitless Attempts of Father
Agatangelos to convert the Mandaye or Disciples of John the Bap-
tist. Dr. Wolff, however, establishes a School which the Son of
even the Ganz Awra, or Representative of Jesus Christ, attends;
they affirm Boohyra to have been a Nestorian Monk ; also that they
emigrated from Egypt with the Jews, and separated from them on
the Institution of the Rite of Circumcision by Joshua; their Lan-
guage Chaldean. The Ganz Awra has his Right Hand cut off by
order of the Governor of Bosra; he maintained that numbers of
their Sect were resident in Morocco. Catholicity shown to be a
natural Principle from the Conduct of Sectarians.

On the 7th November I left Teheraun, accompanied
by Abbas Kouli Khan, Messrs. Taylor, Thomson,
Glen, Abbot, Read, Carapied, and the Russian

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 211

Attaches. Previous to my departure, Count Medem
called at the British Embassy, and took leave. I
arrived that day at Kand, nine miles from Teheraun.
It is a beautiful village, with gardens. On the 8th
of November we came to Sunghur-Abad, thirty-
eight miles from Teheraun. It belongs to Haje
Mirza Aghasee.

On the 9th of November we reached Sepher-
Khoja. A curious incident happened when I arrived.
Assaad Ullah Beyk, who, when I was at Bokhara,
was slave to Abdul Samut Khan, also arrived in this
village. He ransomed himself for ninety tillahs,
though the Nayeb had never bought him ; and
besides all this, the poor fellow was obliged to give
him a shawl worth one hundred tillahs. I confess
that I supposed him acquainted with the Nayeb's
design to kill me by assassins, and that I believed
him to be one of them ; but he quickly undeceived
and assured me, that Abdul Samut Khan had not
treated him better than me. Assaad Ullah Beyk
was now the Shah's Chaparee (postman), and was
going to collect money at Khoy.

November 10th. Reached Casween with Mul-
lah Mehdee, — an immense town ; but, on account of
lack of water, and of the plague, thinly inhabited.
Formerly, numerous Jews dwelt there, who were
transported to Sabzawar, Nishapoor, and Torbad
in Khorassaun. It was formerly a royal residence.

P2

212 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

The Governor, a very kind man, received me in his
house, and treated me most hospitably. On Novem-
ber 14th we reached Sultanieh, built by the Shah
Khoda Banda. A splendid mausoleum is here.

On the 18th of November I arrived at Sanjoon,
built, according to Jewish tradition, by Ahasuerus.
There is a Georgian there, Yakoob Khan by name,
who is in the service of the Persian army, and occu-
pies the situation of Colonel. He practices secretly
the Christian religion, and has all his children bap-
tized ; and as his wife was just confined he requested
me to baptize the child, which I did ; and Mullah
Mehdee, my baptized convert, was godfather. I
pressed upon Yakoob Khan the duty of confessing
the name of Christ publicly ; upon which he begged
me to recommend him to the Queen of England, in
order to be made a Colonel in the British army.
Then he said he would immediately go to England,
profess openly Christianity in the Colonel's uniform,
and sword in hand. I could not give him any
encouragement. I found there another young Geor-
gian, who told me, if I did not take him on to
England, and put him in the way to make money,
he would turn Mussulman in spite of me. I told
him he was welcome to do so.

On the 20th we arrived at Gul-Teppa. On the
road towards that place I met with the American
missionaries, Perkins and Stocking. I asked them

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 213

where they came from. Mr. Perkins said, "You
are Dr. Wolff, I guess." Stocking said, "Yes, I
know him : it is Dr. Wolff, if I guess right." We
were not able to talk much, from the heavy fall of
snow.

On the 24th of November I was taken so ill on
horseback, that I vomited immensely, and was also
seized with a terrible shivering ; I therefore sent im-
mediately the Gholam of Colonel Sheil, who accom-
panied me, to Tabreez, to Mr. Bonham, Her Britannic
Majesty's Consul- General. As he had no Takhtra-
wan (litter) himself, he procured me that of one of
the principal Armenians of Tabreez. Mr. Bonham,
Her Britannic Majesty?s Consul-General, and his
most amiable lady, received me not only with hos-
pitality, but with great cordiality. I baptized their
child, born while I was at Bokhara. Through the
kind care of Dr. Casolani, the medical gentleman of
Prince Bahman Mirza, I was partially restored to
health. After which Mr. Bonham gave a public
dinner on my account, to which he invited Monsieur
Osroff, and the Russian Attaches, and all the Greek
and Armenian gentlemen. Mr. Osroff gave a din-
ner in return, and told me that he had orders
from his Government to give me every assistance in
case that I intended to go u vid Russia." Mr. Osroff
also told me that he had been private secretary
to Prince Galitzin, late Minister of Public Instruc-

214 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

tion ; and in perusing the private correspondence of
that statesman, he frequently met with my name,
and an honourable description of my pursuits.

I also was introduced by Mr. Bonham to His
Royal Highness Bahman Mirza, Prince Governor of
Tabreez and the whole province of Azerbijan. He
is brother to the present King. He wrote for me
the following autograph, of which I subjoin, from its
length, the translation only; and he also made me a
present of an emerald ring, worth thirty pounds.

Translation of a Letter from His Royal Highness Bahman
Mirza, Prince Governor of the Province of Azerbijan,
Persia, addressed to the Rev. Dr. J. Wolff, LL.D. Sfc.

As at the time of the victory and dominion of the
army of the great state of England in the AfFghaun coun-
tries, two officers of that magnificent and powerful monarchy
were lost at the seat of Government of Bokhara, and there
were no signs of them; in the year of the Hijrah 1259,
His Excellency, endowed with acuteness and knowledge,
a chief among the nobles of the Christians, and a pillar
among the learned of the religion of the Messiah, Priest
Joseph Wolff, who belongs to the great and noble of that
religion, and who is familiar and acquainted with every
language, — the excess of his learning, and the extremity
of his magnanimity and research, outweighing in this busi-
ness the sacrificing of his life and property, — that he might
arrive at the truth of this news, he accounted the trouble
of 'this very dangerous journey, in which the first step is
taking leave of life, more agreeable than remaining at ease.
And in this long journey, which in every road of it, from
the brigands of the tribes of Yemout and Turkomaun, and
of the Septs, with crooked languages, of Tartary, may be

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 215

considered as going out of the world, he trusted his own
single person to the step of diligence, until, after a thousand
kinds of afflictions, he accomplished the object which he had.
In truth, undergoing such hardships is beyond the endurance
of every one. Now that in the latter end of the year of the
Hijrah 1260, he has returned, and arrived at the seat of
Government of Tabreez, it was necessary for us to write
an account of the extent of his hardships, which we have
seen and heard of, in this our own hand writing, that in
every state and in every country it may tend to the increase
of his consideration and honour. And we further order
the governors and lords, and nobles and chiefs of the country
of Azerbijan, at every station and in all journeys at the
time of his passing, to take care of the aforesaid priest, and
treat him with kindness and honour. Also, if after this he
returns to Azerbijan, they must act according to this order.
Written in the month of Zeekada, A.H. 1260, answering to,
from 12th Nov. to 11th Dec, A.D. 1844.

The Russian inhabitants of Tabreez, as well as
Greeks, together with the English, observed that
it would be a perfect disgrace for the British Go-
vernment to let the matter of the murder of Stc-d-
dart and Conolly sleep, as there was no doubt that
they were both political agents, sent by Government,
and that Conolly went to Bokhara by direction of
Colonel Sloddart. To prove that this notion is
correct, I give :

I. Extracts from a letter of Captain J. Conolly,
brother to the deceased officer, to a relative.

Arthur starts in a few days for Kokan. His
mission will be an interesting one, and the objects of it you

216 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

will learn by reading a correspondence which Arthur intends
sending you. ******

The fortunate Envoy is Arthur. His route will be
across the desert to Khiva, and, if circumstances permit, to
Bokhara. He has the prospect of gaining great laurels.
Sir A. Burnes was first offered the appointment, but de-
clined the embassy; and Sir William said that he could
hardly dispense with his services from this place (Cabul).
Arthur will no doubt write to you shortly about his mission.

II. The following correspondence from Colonel
Stoddart :

July, 1841.

Conolly returns back, you have probably read, and is

likely to accompany me hence, and has been placed at my

disposal, so far as calling upon him to return by this line

goes.

* # # * j ^ave ayailed myself of Captain Conolly's
visit here to propose to the Ameer to send me off, as Captain
Conolly has orders to stop here if the Ameer wishes.

The above evidence is quite sufficient to prove,
that it cannot conduce to the honour of the British
Government to let this question slumber as it has
done. AfFghanistaun and Bokhara have broken
through that charm that bound down the Deeves
and Afrits of these regions, as powerful as the
fabled virtue of the Seal of Solyman. It is well that
the chivalric valour of a Napier in Scinde, a Go-
vernment like Lord Ellenborough's, one meteor flash,
dazzling and confounding, now startles the East; but
let reverses come, and see then whether the two
hundred millions of our Indian empire will not break

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 217

from the charm that has bound them astance for
nearly a century. The question is a matter of in-
difference as to envoys or officers. I am of the wise
man's opinion of old: That form of Government
is best, " where an injury done to the meanest subject
is an insult to the whole community "

He spoke of insult : I speak of murder. What
country, I ask, has such facility to vindicate her
honour, to preserve the life of every one of her
meanest subjects, as England. To say nothing of
her officers, her distinguished officers, I might add
more, her — but I forbear to use that — that gives the
climax to our shame. I speak not of the past ; I
inculpate no one ; I leave that to others ; but I do
demand, Can matters rest thus ? Are we to allow
this foul blot on the scutcheon of national honour ?

The Persians here visit the following holy places:
1st. Kerbelai, near Bagdad, where Imaum Hussein
is buried. 2nd. Kasemein, near Kerbelai, where is
the sepulchre of Kasem. 3rd. Meshed, where is the
tomb of Imaum Resa. After a visit to these towns,
a person receives the appellation of Kerbelai, Me-
shedee, or Kasemein. I joked frequently with them,
and said, as I had been at Meshed, they ought to
call me Meshedee Youssuf Wolff. But after they
have made the pilgrimage to Mecca and Medina,
they drop these appellations, and become Haje, like
the rest of the Muhammedans.

218 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

A considerable feud now prevails between the
Persians and Turks; for which reason, as I have
observed, English and Russian Commissioners are at
Erzroom, in order to prevent hostilities. The dis-
pute first broke out on account of the frontiers ; but
it was increased by the Pasha of Bagdad sending
troops to Kerbelai, and massacreing the Sheeahs of
that place, which will never be forgotten. I am
very sorry that Colonel Taylor's conduct, the British
Consul-General at Bagdad, was disapproved of on
that occasion. He was displaced for not having
interfered, and prevented the Turks from marching
to Kerbelai. He is an excellent man, and of asto-
nishing learning, and a marvellous polyglott. He
knows above twenty languages. However, it seems
that he placed too much reliance on his Armenian
subalterns, especially Khatshik. I hope Govern-
ment will give him some other post. Government
has, however, greatly to their honour, sent to Bagdad
a most extraordinary man. His name is Major
Rawlinson, who has so distinguished himself at Can-
dahar, and he is a great favourite with the Indian
Government. He is, besides, a great Arabic., Persian,
and Turkish scholar, and an ardent philanthropist.
It must have been very amusing to see these two
gentlemen, as I learnt they did frequently, (Colonel
Taylor and Major Rawlinson,) remaining up until
three in the morning, disputing about some Arabic

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 219

root, as my friend Colonel F arrant related matters
to me. I hear Major Rawlinson protects admirably
the missionaries.

I shall never forget the kindness of Colonel Tay-
lor, and the assistance he gave me when with him six
months at Bozra, in the Persian Gulf, in making
researches amongst the disciples of John the Baptist,
who are called also Mandaye Hayah, i. e. the fol-
lowers of the living God. They affect to be the
descendants of the Chaldeans, and of the brothers of
Abraham ; and when Abraham proclaimed the unity
of the one God, they relate the brothers of Abraham
followed him. But when Abraham established the
rite of circumcision, they looked at him with horror,
and separated from him. But they continued to
worship the one living God by three names; the names
of Hayah Kadmaya, Hayah Tinyana, Hayah Tlitaya,
i. e. the living in the first degree, the living in the second
degree, the living in the third degree. And when John
the Baptist appeared, they received baptism by St.
John in the Wilderness, and from that moment they
have had two kinds of priests, they say, the one
called the Turmeda, who is a representative of the
Baptist, and the Ganz-Awra, who is the representative
of Jesus Christ. And the representative of Jesus
Christ is baptized every Sunday by the representative
of John the Baptist in the river Frat, or Euphrates.
They have a great book, called Sadra Raba, the

220 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

authors of which, they say, were Seth and John the
Baptist. They relate that John the Baptist was
buried at Shuster, the ancient Susan, in Khuzistaun.
They themselves reside in the following places, near
the Euphrates : at Bozra, Gorno, Sook-al-Sheookh,
Shustar, and Desbul. Their number amounts to six
thousand. Father Agatangelos, a Roman Catholic
missionary, about one hundred years ago, and whose
journal was given to me in MS. by the Roman
Catholic priest at Bussorah, in the year 1824, and
which I have given to the London Society for Pro-
moting Christianity among the Jews, relates that he
had made fruitless attempts to convert the Mandaye
to the Catholic religion; but with the kind assistance
of Colonel Taylor, I established a school at Bussorah.
Even the Ganz-Awra, representative of Jesus Christ,
sent his son to the school, who made great progress
in English.

The poor Mandaye sing, persecuted as they are
by the Muhammedans :

We are oppressed by the circumcised.
Departed from our eyes is the timbrel and dance.

They maintain that Boohyra, the monk at Bozra,
who assisted Muhammed, and who was supposed to
be a Nestorian monk by the Christian historians,
was a Mandaye. They also say that, at the time
when the Jews were in the captivity in Egypt, they

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 221

lived with them, and were oppressed, like them, by
the Egyptians ; and when Pharaoh was overwhelmed
in the sea, they emigrated with the children of Israel
to Mount Sinai, and lived there in amity with the
Jews. But when Joshua re-established the rite of
circumcision, they separated from the Jews. It is
very remarkable, that, in the twelfth chapter of
Exodus, it is said, that a mixed multitude went out
with the children of Israel ; and also, according to
Joshua, circumcision was neglected in the desert,
and then re-established. Their language is Chal-
dean. The Ganz-Awra, who was my teacher in
Sabaean, and also Colonel Taylor's, wrote some mys-
terious characters upon a part of the Governor's
wife's body usually concealed from sight, in order
to form a charm to insure pregnancy; for which
the Governor gave orders to cut off his right
hand, and he writes therefore with his left. He
maintained, that a great number of their sect were
residing in the deserts of Faz and Mekanez in
Morocco.

Two things are very remarkable with respect to
small sects, — that they always maintain that great
numbers of their body are residing in distant coun-
tries; so also the Mandaye assert, and the Samari-
tans at Nablooz told me the same, that great num-
bers of their people lived in London and Paris.
And the Baptists in England rejoice very much

222 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

to hear that there exists a sect on the Euphrates,
who, like them, are called disciples of John the
Baptist, and baptize in rivers. This anxiety on
their part indicates Catholicity to be a natural and
inherent principle.

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 223

CHAPTER XXVI.

Two leading Sects amid Muhammedans, Sheeahs, and Sunnees. Ball by-
Mr. Bonham; Dancers all Gentlemen. Death of Mrs. Bonliam.
Shamar Beyk ; Anecdote of him and General Neidhart. Chaldeans
in the Mountains of Kurdistaun, not of the Ten Tribes, Dr. Wolff
thinks, as commonly asserted. Nestorians or Chaldeans; their
Assertion that they did not become Followers of Nestorius, but
simply received him kindly among them; Episcopacy hereditary
among them; oppressed by the Kurds; Sir Stratford Canning
interferes in their behalf. Mar Yohannan, Bishop of Oroomiah;
his Letter, written in English. Accurate character of Mr. Ains-
worth's Work on Asia Minor, &c. Armenians of Tabreez give
Dr. Wolff a Public Dinner. Diploma from Bahman Mirza to Dr.
Casolani. Daoud Khan. Attempt to abolish Ancient Forms by the
Protestant Missionaries injudicious. Edward Burgess; his unfor-
tunate Position ; Letter addressed by him to Dr. Wolff. Departure
of Dr. Wolff from Tabreez. Route— Mayoon; Deesa Khaleel ; Tasuj ;
Sayd Hajee; Khoy. Dangerous travelling from this point. Rob-
bery of Messrs. Todd and Abbott ; the Kurds compel Mr. Todd to
swallow his Pomatum. Route — Soraba; Karaine; Leyba; Awajick.
Snow compels Dr. Wolff to go on Horseback. The Pasha of Erz-
room sends a Guard of Honour for Dr. Wolff. Letters from
Colonel Williams.

I shall now touch on a few points with respect
also to the two leading sects among Muhammedans,
the Sheeahs, and the Sunnees. The Persians
being* Sheeahs, practise dissimulation whenever they
come into countries where the Sunnees are in
power. This system of dissimulation is called by
them Takeea. Thus, for instance, the Sheeahs pray
with their arms hanging down, like a soldier when
he is drilled, and add the name of Ali in their

224 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

prayers, and curse five times a day Omar, Os-
man, and Abu-Bekr in then* prayers; but when
they are among the Sunnees they perform their
devotions with their hands laid upon their breast,
omit the name of Ali, and take care not to curse
Omar, Osman, and Abu-Bekr. A Muhammedan
at Meshed told me that the Sheeahs were enjoined
by Muhammed himself to practise Takeea in the
presence of Sunnees. When I told him, that in
Muhammed's life the distinction between Sunnee
and Sheeah did not exist, he told me that Muham-
med foresaw, by the spirit of prophecy, that such a
distinction must arise.

Mr. Bonham gave a ball on account of my
arrival. He got the band of the Prince to play
European music, but the dancers were not ladies
and gentlemen, but all gentlemen. The Russian
Consul-General, Mr. Osroff, with all his Attaches,
and the respectable Greek merchants of the house
of Ralli, — a firm established at Tabreez, Constanti-
nople, Marseilles, London, and Manchester, — were
there. They put on my Tiirkomaun dresses and the
robe which the Ameer of Bokhara had given me. It
was a most funny sight. Mrs. Bonham kept herself
in the other room, as some Persians were present*

I was sincerely grieved when I heard, after my
departure, of the death of that excellent lady, who
died from typhus fever, and is now removed from

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 225

us. She was one of the most pious, sensible, vir-
tuous, and kind-hearted ladies I ever met with ;
exquisitely beautiful, with a child-like simplicity.
She was daughter to Sir William Floyd, Bart.,
residing at Brussels. I shall ever remember Mr.
Bonham and his sainted lady with gratitude and
delight.

Previous to my departure, I heard also at Ta-
breez, a great deal of Shamir Beyk, a mighty chief
in Daghistaun, who has risen up in battle against
the mighty Emperor of Russia, and a bloody war is
now carried on in that region. General Woronzoff
has been sent against him ; and though the conflict
is obstinate, and the mountaineers supported by
Polish officers, there is no doubt entertained that,
at last, Shamir Beyk, though a gallant fellow, must
give in to the Giant of the North. I heard a curi-
ous anecdote of this Chief and General Neidhart,
Governor-General of Georgia.

General Neidhart issued a proclamation to the
following purport ; that whosoever would bring the
head of Shamir Beyk should receive as much gold as
the head weighed. Shamir Beyk, on hearing of it,
sent a letter to General Neidhart, expressing to His
Excellency his gratitude for the high compliment he
had paid his head, by setting so high a value on it ;
but on his part he regretted he could not return the
compliment, since he could assure His Excellency
Vol. II. Q

226 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

that he would not give a straw to any one who would
deliver his (General Neidhart's) head to him (Shamir
Beyk).

A few words on the Chaldeans in the moun-
tains of Kurdistaun. These Chaldeans, as the late
lamented Dr. Grant well observed, are of Jewish
origin, though I cannot go so far as to affirm
that they are of the Ten Tribes, since they do not
know their own genealogy. They are now mostly
Christians, and a number of them, converted to the
Roman Catholic Church, have their patriarch at
Diarbekr.

The real Chaldeans, also called Nestorians, had a
patriarch, Mar Shemaun by name, who resided until
the last year only at Khojanes. They protest, how-
ever, that they are not Nestorians, and they said to
me, in the year 1825, when I visited them at Sal-
mast and Oroomia, " Nestorius came to us, and we
received him kindly, but we never took him as our
guide, but as our brother in Christ." They resem-
ble mostly the Protestants of Germany and England,
for they have neither images nor monasteries, and
their priests are married. The episcopal dignity,
however, is hereditary, as well as that of the Pa-
triarch, and at the time the mother of the patriarch
becomes pregnant, she abstains from drinking wine
and eating meat ; and in case that a son is born, he
is the patriarch, and if a daughter, she is obliged to

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 227

observe eternal virginity. They are now sorely
pressed by the Kurds ; several thousands of them
have been slain by the Kurds, and many wounded,
which atrocities were committed at the instigation of
the Pasha and Cazi of Mosul; but this was too much
for the great Sir Stratford Canning to allow. He
interfered at the Porte, and the Cazi and Pasha of
Mosul were summoned to appear before the Sul-
tan • and the gallant Colonel Turner was sent to the
Kurds to investigate matters, and Mr. Stevens, the
British Vice-Consul of Samsoon, was sent to redeem
the Chaldean slaves made by the Kurds, in which he
was very successful. My excellent friends, Colonel
Williams and Mr. Brant, at Erzroom, were also em-
ployed by Sir Stratford Canning to obtain the protec-
tion of the late excellent Pasha of Erzroom, for the
Chaldean Christians, Haje Kamil Pasha, not only
Pasha of Erzroom, but Seraskier for all Kurdis-
taun. And he did so effectually, but the Porte
showed in that, as in everything else, her imbecility
and total unfitness for Government, by recalling that
excellent Pasha after my departure from Erzroom,
and sending, as his successor, to Erzroom a most
miserable creature.

Mar Yohannan, Bishop of Oroomia, called on me
at Tabreez. He is a gentleman of much intelligence
and had learned English from the American mission-
aries, and has visited America. He wrote to me a

Q2

228 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

letter, which reached me in London, and which I
insert just as it came.

My dear and beloved Friend, Oroomiah, March 27th, 1845.

I have much pleasure to write letters to you, but I
could not find good time. I greatly desire to see you and
to speak with you. I hope you will not forget me ; will you
remember me with your prayers in your churches, when you
pray for the people. Your prayers will be a blessing to us,
and will guide us to heaven; they will be light to our way.
I wrote another letter for the Lord Bishop of London. If
you please you will write me answer, that I may know; I
want to come to your country, and to see your people. If
you please I will bring with me two or three boys that may
learn your language, they know little the English. My
dear, we made covenant with each other at Theran that we
shall go together to London; you left me at Tabreez, you
went. I hope now you will send me letter about my
going to your country. May the Lord bless you with all his
blessings in the kingdom of heaven.
Your affectionate Friend,

Mar Yohannan, Bishop of Oroomiah.

The letter is in itself fully indicative of the
simple character of these Chaldean Bishops. I am
pleased to find that Mr. Ainsworth agrees with me
that the Chaldeans are not Nestorians, and the de-
tails in his admirable work are such as may be fully
relied on, for I have confirmed by personal experi-
ence a large portion of the matter in his highly inte-
resting volumes, entitled, Travels and Researches in
Asia Minor, Mesopotamia, Chaldea, and Armenia.

The principal Armenians of Tabreez also gave

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 229

me a public dinner, to which the Consul-General, Mr.
Bonham, and the rest of the English inhabitants of
Tabreez, and the Russian Consul- General, with the
Russian authorities, were invited.

I must here also express my thanks to Dr. Caso-
lani, a Maltese physician, who recovered me from
a second dangerous attack of bilious fever. Dr.
Casolani is nominated Physician to the Prince
Governor, Bahman Mirza, by a diploma to the
following curious purport :

A Royal Order, — That since the sagacity, the acute-
ness, the science, the excellence of the high in dignity, exalted
station, having sincerity and candour, being endowed with
judgment and penetration, the great among the nobles of
Christendom, Mr. Casolani, English Physician and Surgeon,
has been proved in the receptacle of the honourable mind,
and revealed to the illustrious and royal understanding, par-
ticularly at this time, as the cures which he has performed in
this place have all been marked with wisdom and science,
and the remedies which he has made use of in this country
have been profitable to and effective in every constitution
and temperament, it was necessary that we should attach,
particularly to ourselves, a person of this kind, who was cele-
brated and lauded for his approved skill. Therefore, in this
year of Loo-eel, of happy indication, we have enrolled the
high in station above mentioned in the rank of our followers,
and in reward for this service, we have granted and bestowed
three hundred tomans in the way of salary to the above-men-
tioned high in rank ; that he may receive and take it every
year ; that he may use it for his expenses, and spend it for
his disbursements ; that with tranquillity and repose he may
accomplish the cure, and administer remedies, as may happen

230 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

to the Royal Chief and his princely children, and according
to the extent of his skill he may be diligent in examining
and considering our constitution, so that the Royal favour
may daily increase.

The Honourable Secretaries of State will take a copy of
the date of this Order, and consider it as obligatory.

I visited again Daoud Khan, a Colonel in the Rus-
sian service. He is a genuine Georgian, and as such
is not very fond of the Armenians. He informed
me what I knew before, for I was in Georgia in
the year 1825, that the native Jews in Georgia are
slaves to the country gentlemen of Georgia, or, as
those country gentlemen are called, Kenyaz. The
first of these is the Prince of Kenyaz Aristow, at
Suran; the second, Kostantil, at Mukhram Bat-
tone; and the third, Prince Kalavantan, at Sekwee.
I give these names, as the Jews' Society may feel dis-
posed, probably, to send some agents there. The
dignitaries in the Georgian Church have the follow-
ing degrees: 1, Diacon; 2, Odeli (Priest) ; 3, Behse
(Monk); 4, Dacanoggi (Dean); 5, Zinam Jawaree
(Bishop) ; 6, Katalikos (Archbishop).

It will be in vain for Protestant missionaries to
attempt to abolish forms among the Eastern Chris-
tians. We seem to forget that the human mind
is like fluid matter, which can only attain perma-
nency in a vessel; therefore Dr. Grant, Whiting,
and Goodell, perceived that, and left all forms
unaltered. I must also note here, that Dr. South-

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 231

gate, American Episcopal missionary at Constanti-
nople, has gained the affection of the Armenian
Bishop at Constantinople, by his wise conduct in
this particular.

I must not forget also to name an interesting
and unfortunate young gentleman at Tabreez, whose
name is Edward Burgess, well acquainted with the
Persian language. This excellent young gentleman
is employed by Prince Bahman Mirza, as translator
of the English Newspapers. His brother was em-
ployed by the Persian Government, and sent by
them with several thousand tomauns to England
to buy merchandize, and poor Edward Burgess
remained guarantee for his brother's honour. His
brother most shamefully neglected to redeem his
honour, and abandoned Edward to the conse-
quences of his generous devotion. He is there-
fore detained in Persia for his brother the de-
faulter. The poor man would be in the utmost
distress if Mr. Bonham and the Russian Consul-
General, and the Greek merchants, did not do
all in their power to serve him. He told me,
with tears in his eyes, that he had written four
times to Colonel Sheil without receiving any answer
from him, though he had written to him officially
as a British subject. Such a matter ought to be
settled, since, in a country like Persia, nothing
is more probable than that at the death of the King

232 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

Burgess would be sold as a slave. I am exceed-
ingly pained to be obliged to say such things, for
the forwarding the second letter of the Shah to
Bokhara by Colonel Sheil, certainly saved my life ;
but I am only one, and I was recommended power-
fully ; but an ambassador ought to take an interest
in the meanest subject. The translation of Prince
Bahman Mirza's letter, given above, is by him, and
he enclosed it to me in the following kind note,
which I insert.

My dear Sir, Tabreez, 8th February, 1845.

I sent the translation of the letter the Prince wrote to
you by a courier of the French Mission, who started on the
1st of January; I trust that it reached you safely. I did not
write to you when I sent that translation, because I had very
little notice of the courier's departure. I hope the translation
will please you; I have made it as near the Persian as pos-
sible to make sense of it, and I endeavoured, as much as our
language will allow, to preserve the idiom of the Persian;
you who are acquainted with the latter language know how
difficult that is. The title " Excellency," which is given to
you in the letter, may appear strange in Europe, but it is the
only translation I could give to the word tJ\j^( (Jenaub).
In this country it is only used to priests of high rank and
ambassadors, and has always been translated as I have done.
One of the Government secretaries attached to the Prince
told me that His Poyal Highness had given you -this title
because he understood you had high clerical rank in England,
and therefore he wished to give you the same title and
respect as was usual in addressing their own Mahomedan
priesthood.

You no doubt have heard of the melancholy death of poor

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 233

Mrs. Bonham ; she died on the 30th of December, after an
illness of only five days.

I hope that this will find you safely passed through all
your difficulties, we heard of your arrival at Erzeroom, but
that you were unwell; no doubt, ere this reaches you, you
will again have returned home, and had a happy meeting
with your family.

It was just as well you started when you did, for the
winter has been most severe; I believe nearly two hundred
people have perished in the snow in the immediate neigh-
bourhood of this town, besides those who have been lamed
and crippled; the snow in many places was drifted level with
the walls of the vineyards which surround the town, and the
thermometer stood at ten degrees below Zero, or forty-two
degrees of frost. It was almost like living in a place that
was besieged; they were so constantly bringing us in news
of men being lost. For -the last ten days the weather has
been milder, and to-day and yesterday we have had quite
warm spring days, and the ice and snow is fast dis-
appearing.

I am, my dear Sir,

Your obedient Servant,

Edward Burgess.

At last I determined on my departure from
Tabreez. Mr. Osroff, the Russian Consul-General,
gave me a third dinner, and made me a present of a
Takhtrwan (litter) ; for being ill I could not ride on
horseback. I left Tabreez on the 9th of Decem-
ber. Bonham, Osroff, Dr. Casolani, Daoud Khan
the Armenian, all the Russian Attaches and the
Greek merchants, accompanied me a long distance.
Dr. Casolani's brother accompanied me even to

234 NARRATIVE OP THE MISSION

Khoy. All the Europeans cheered me heartily on
my departure, with many a hearty Hurra.

On the evening of the 9th we slept in a village
called Mayoon, eight English miles from Tabreez.
On the 10th we went to Deesa Khaleel, twenty-four
English miles from the last place. On the 11th we
reached Tasuj, twenty-four miles. On the 12th,
Sayd Hajee, twenty-four miles. On the 13th we
arrived at Khoy, a considerable town in former
times, but almost entirely destroyed by an earth-
quake. It is now in great confusion, for there is
a Governor there, and besides him a brother of the
Haje, the Prime Minister, who also pretends to be
Governor, does everything in despite of the real Go-
vernor; and Prince Bahman Mirza, Prince Go-
vernor of Azerbijaun, does not dare to keep him in
order, from fear of offending his brother the Haje.

I stopped then in the house of a Persian, for
whom I had a letter from the Armenians of Tabreez,
till the 15th, when I set out for Perea, always in
the Takhtrwan, for my excessive weakness and
biliousness did not allow me to ride on horseback.
Here the great danger of travelling begins, by
reason of the Kurds, who attack every traveller, and
who attacked, some years back, Messrs. Todd and
Abbott, and robbed them of everything they had.
After they had stripped poor Todd of everything,
they took away his pomatum. They asked him what

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 235

it was, when he said that it was butter ; they tasted
it, but as they did not like it, they forced poor Todd
to demolish sundry pots of it. I am told that he
cannot endure bacon ever since, and he was so
disgusted with the country, that he took a tremen-
dous oath not to remain in Persia ; and he actually
left Persia, where he was handsomely paid, and
returned to Constantinople, where he was Attache
without pay, but minus pomatum, until he became
Attache in Hanover.

I have this account from high authority, no less
than his bosom friend, Mr. Layard, who goes into
the full details of everything, and does not leave a
tittle unfathomed. I learn that Mr. Todd published
something about me ; which compliment I beg leave
to pay him in return. He is, however, an excellent
person, notwithstanding all this.

On the 16th December we arrived at Soraba,
twenty-four English miles from Khoy. The cold
was intense, and my biliousness increased. Snow
had begun to fall. However, we continued our
journey, and we arrived at Karaine, where eight
Armenian families are residing, who are exceedingly
dirty; but as they were well acquainted with the
road, I agreed with one of them to accompany me
as far as Erzroom, in order that he might every-
where prepare lodgings among the Armenians, for
as my health was precarious, I wished to stay

236 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

ill Christian houses, so that if I should die I might
be decently buried and in a Christian manner.
After I had agreed with him to give him two ducats
to Erzroom, and his victuals, the priest who had
recommended him told him that he should not allow
him to go except I gave him something for his
recommendation. Though I am rather partial to
the Armenians in general, I must say that the Ar-
menian priesthood around Tabreez and Khoy, toge-
ther with those priests of the Chaldean nation who
have been converted to Romanism, and who reside
at Salmast, Bashgala, Khosrowa, and Oroomia,
are most depraved, and generally perform the office
of Ruffiani to Europeans who are of a gay dispo-
sition. I gave that Armenian priest something for
the permission to depart with his Neophyte. A few
miles distant from Karaine is an Armenian convent,
called Tatus Arrakel, which means Thaddeus the
Apostle, for it is believed that the Apostle Thaddeus
preached there. That convent contains about six
priests, who are called Wardapiet.

We were detained at Karaine by a Kulagh.
We then arrived at Seyba, seven miles distant. As
it snowed too hard, and natives wrere actually frozen
to death that day, I was compelled to keep the house,
where the Armenian whom I had taken with me
thoroughly disgusted me by his dirty habits. The
filthiness of that fellow was almost inconceivable.

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 237

On the 20th December we set out for Awajick,
the last frontier town of Persia. Khaleefa Kouli
Khan, the governor of that place, received me very
kindly, and he again asked me particularly whether
I had heard anything of Mc Neil Saheb and Camp-
bell Saheb. I met with a very curious circumstance
in his house. I saw there a Persian servant of
Colonel Farrant, of Erzroom, by whom he was sent
away and in irons from Erzroom to Persia, in order
to receive condign punishment by the Haje of Te-
heraun. He entered my room with his feet in irons,
striking them together, and then sat quietly down,
and smoked a galyoon, and asked me several ques-
tions, with great arrogance. After having inquired
the reason of his being ironed, I ordered him to
leave the room, which he did. I was obliged to
leave my Takhtrwan behind, on account of the
prodigious snow, and I had now to ascend the
mountains of Armenia, and therefore was obliged
to go on horseback.

Khaleefa Kouli Khan went some distance with
me himself, and sent twelve horsemen on with me
who had orders to accompany me as far as Ghizl-
Deesa, fifteen miles from Awajick, in the Sultan's
dominions. Arriving there, I found a cavass, i. e. a
guard of honour, sent there already twenty-four
days previous by His Excellency the Pasha of Erz-
room, Haje Kamil Basha, with a welcome letter of

238 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

my dear friend Colonel Williams, who informed me
that I should find there the gallant and cordial
Colonel Farrant, and that on my approach to Erz-
room they should come out to me and give me three
cheers; at the same time reminding me of my pro-
mise to stay with him, and not with my friend Mr.
Brant, the British Consul. How cheering was this
to me ! Would to God he had been at Teheraun on
my return there, for certainly he would have made
an example of Dil Assa Khan and of Haje Ibrahim !

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 239

CHAPTER XXVII.

Route— Ghizl-Deesa ; Utsh Kelesea. Nierses, the Katokhikos of the
Armenian Church. Efforts of Czar to unite Armenian and Russian
Churches. Route — Yuntsh Aloo ; Kara Klesea ; Mullah Suleiman ;
Seydekan. Dr. Wolff injured by a Fall from his Horse. Route —
Dehli Baba ; Komassur ; KopreKoy; Hassan Kaleh. Letters from
Colonel Williams and Mr. Brant. Letter of Colonel Williams to
Captain Grover. Arrival at Erzroom. Dreadful Sufferings of
Dr. Wolff. Kindness of Colonel Williams, Mr. Brant, and Mr. and
Mrs. Redhouse to Dr. Wolff. Letter of Dr. Casolani. Ambassador
from Bokhara to England arrives at Erzroom. Letter from Sir
Stratford Canning. Interview of Dr. Wolff, Mr. Brant, Colonel
Williams, and Colonel Farrant, with Kamil Pasha; Kamil Pasha's
Statement to them of his Interview with the Ambassador from
Bokhara to England. Departure from Erzroom. Route — Mey
Mansoor; Saaza; Massad; Bey boot; Jaajee Koy; Gumush Khane;
Artasa; Yerkopri; Yeseer Oglu. Letter from Mr. Stevens.

We set out for Ghizl-Deesa, and proceeded on
to Diadeen. On our way thither the heavens were
clear; not a cloud visible until we had passed be-
tween two mountains covered with snow, when sud-
denly the wind blew, from both sides apparently,
and drove from both summits masses of snow into
our faces. The cavass seized hold of the rope of my
horse, and giving a spur to his own, said, "Let us
try to get through that horrid pass as fast as possible ;
if not we shall be buried in the snow, for here is the
Kulagh." After a few minutes ride the sky was
covered with mists, which kept back the wind, and
thus we came safely through the dangerous pass,

240 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

and arrived at Diadeen. There is more danger in
these countries when the sky is clear than when
surrounded with thick mists.

On the 23rd we arrived in the Armenian convent
of Utsh Kelesea, i. e. Three Churches, of which I
have already given a description, for I have been
twice there. In that convent I found an ancient
MS. of the Bible in the Armenian tongue, and my
friend J. H. Frere will be glad to learn that, on his
account, I looked particularly at Daniel viii. 14, in
which the number two thousand four hundred is
found. Thus the Hebrew MS. at Bokhara, at Adri-
anople, and Utsh Kelesea confirm his hypothesis.
Utsh Kelesea is situated near the Moorad, i. e. Eu-
phrates. The convent is placed at the very back of
a mountain, and we cross the Moorad by a bridge,
so that in winter it is exceedingly cold, and there is
almost a continual Kulagh. The superior informed
me, what I knew before, that the great Nierses,
formerly Archbishop of Tiflis, was exiled by Pas-
kewitsh to Bessarabia, on account of his inflexible
character, and refusal to cede any rights of the
Armenian Church. The Emperor Nicholas, how-
ever, showed his good sense by proposing Nierses to
the Armenian Church as a candidate worthy of being
chosen as Katokhikos at Ech-Miazin. I knew Nierses
when at Tiflis in the year 1825. He was a vene-
rable man, learned in the Armenian language, and

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 241

even in Russian. His whole mind was absorbed in
the great attempt of reviving in his nation the spirit
of Nierses Shnorhaale and Nierses Lampronazi. He
tried to reform his nation without imbuing them
with a spirit of German Neology. He established
schools for his nation in all parts of Georgia, and the
writings of Mesrop are read, and those of Nierses
Shnorhaale and Moses Korinaze. In these addresses
he reminds his countrymen that they are descendants
of King Abgar, who corresponded with our Lord.
He had his nation instructed not only in the
Armenian language, but also in the Russian litera-
ture.

The great Nikolaus has hopes to unite the Arme-
nian Church with the Russian ; and though I consi-
der it to be a Scriptural principle that the Sovereign'
ought to be the Head of the Church, I think that he
will find it a difficult matter to carry. All attempts
among Protestants to establish a union have proved
abortive ; and not only that, but Christian commu-
nities who have lived in peace among themselves
have been disunited as soon as a direct attempt was
made to establish a stricter union among them ; so,
for instance, the so-called Evangelische Kirche, i. e. the
Swiss Confession, lived in perfect harmony together
until the late King of Prussia made an attempt to
unite both together; then even the great Professor

Vol. 11. R

242 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

Creutzer, at Heidelberg, and others, rose against it.
Thus the attempt to establish a union between the
Greek and Anglican Church has failed ; and thus
also the attempt lately made of uniting the Lutheran
Church with the Church of England will fail — yea,
has failed already. The best mode of uniting Chris-
tian Churches is, to give each other assistance in
those things which the Christian Churches are in
want of, and to show good will toward each other ;
and thus, by each branch trying in its own com-
munity to promote a spirit of holy zeal for the glory
of Cod, and the promotion of His kingdom, and by
each branch displaying a holy emulation in the prac-
tice of Christian virtues, the best union is established.
And, I ask, is there union within the pale of the
Roman Catholic Church ? I ask, is there any union
between the Roman Catholics ? Even before Ronge
was excited to an open protest against the Coat of
Treves, the schools of Hermes, Sailer, Gosner, were
as much opposed, not only to Rome, but even to the
school of Klee, and even more than the Lutherans
and Evangelicals are. I ask, is the Theological
Seminary of Prague, where Caspar Royke, Bolzano,
and Peszel taught, in union with the unity taught at
Rome ? And is there not a distinct difference made
in Austria between Roman Catholics and the so-
called Romlinge, i. e. Romanists ? Why was Johan-

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 243

nes Jahn, Professor of Oriental Literature, openly
denounced as a heretic by Cardinal Severoli ? I ask
further, are the theological schools in Italy united ?
Whether, for instance, there is no difference between
the teaching of Tamburini at Pavia, and Professor
Piatti, formerly Professor of Dogmatic Theology
in the Collegio Romano at Rome? And, I ask,
would Dr. Wiseman dare to teach at Rome as he
does at Oscott ? There is no union in the churches,
and no rule of uniformity will re-establish that unity;
and no unity will be re-established until the coming
of our Lord Jesus Christ to reign upon earth ; then
the nation shall go up to Jerusalem, and one language
shall be spoken.

I stopped at the convent of Utsh Kelesea one day,
and was kindly treated by the monks. On the 24th
we arrived at Yuntsh Aloo, twenty-five English
miles from Utsh Kelesea. Here a priest informed
me that the Armenian Liturgy was composed by
Nierses, Mesrop, Yeknisha, and Isaac, in the fourth
century. On the 25th (being Christmas day) we
arrived at Kara Klesea, inhabited also by Armeni-
ans, who were very anxious to know whether the
English people were united with the Church of Rome
or not. I gave them a full account of that point.
I wished to set out that same day for Mullah Sulei-
man, but I was overtaken by a shower of snow, which
compelled me to return, and I was so weakened

R2

244 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

besides, that I sent on an express messenger to
Colonel Williams, telling him of my approach.

On the 27th I set out for Mullah Suleiman. The
hatred subsisting between the Armenians and the
Armenian Catholics cannot be described. The
Armenian servant I had with me, and an Armenian
priest, who came with me, actually refused to go
with me to the house of the Armenian Catholic
priest, and rather preferred leaving me and going to
the house of a Muhammedan.

From thence we went to Seydekan, five English
miles. I was detained there also by the snow. The
Armenians there are so dirty, that it would be actu-
ally indecent to describe it. On the 30th December,
we arrived on the Mount of Taher, and as I wished
to get fast through the mountain, and was afraid of
being overtaken by a Kulagh, I spurred my horse
forward, but I got a violent fall, and the horse fell
with me, so that I was taken up senseless, and
brought bound on the horse to Kurd Ali, inhabited
by Kurds, and stopped in the house of Hassan Aga.
The present Pasha of Erzroom has inspired terror
among the Kurds in his immediate vicinity, and
therefore I was civilly treated, but left in a stable
with cows and horses. Most of the Kurds in
villages wear no turbans, but large caps dropping
behind, like the Maltese. Their language is a
most horrid corruption and mixture of Turkish and

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 245

Persian, and therefore the proverb is current
among- the Persians :

Arabee wasi ast.
Farsee shereen ast.
Turkee hunur ast.
Kurdee Khar ast.

Which means Arabic is an extensive language ; the
Persian sweet ; the Turkish powerful ; the Kurdish
donkey-tongue.

On the 31st December we arrived at Dehli
Baba, which has one Armenian church and three
priests. On January 1st, we slept at Komassur. On
the 2nd of January we reached Kopre Koy, where
it was horridly cold; and from thence to Hassan
Kaleh, where I was hospitably received by the
Turkish Governor, who delivered to me the follow-
ing kind letters from Colonel Williams and our
Consul :

My dear Dr. Wolff, Erzeroom, 3rd January, 1845.

Pray persevere and come into Erzeroom; it would be
madness to take medicine so near us. We will nurse you,
and put you all to rights in a few days. Brant sent you
some wine, which, after all, may be bad for you. I will ride
out to the first village this afternoon; pray therefore take
courage and come along; we are all ready for you, and if
you are to be laid up, we are to be your nurses.

Ever yours truly,

W. F. Williams.

246 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

Erzeroom, 2nd January, 1845,
My dear Wolff, Thursday Evening.

I am glad you are so near us. I received your note
from Dahar, and asked the Pasha to send out a Takhtravan or
a sledge ; he sends out a man to order the Woy voda of Hassan
Kaleh to pay you every attention, and to furnish you with
either a Takhtravan or a sledge, both which the Pasha said
the Woy voda had; but in case he did not send, the Pasha
requested you would wait until one was sent you from hence.
As to Dr. Dickson, he would willingly have gone to Hassan
Kaleh, had you been very ill and required immediate assist-
ance, but he thinks you had better defer taking medicine
until you arrive here, therefore lose no time in coming on. I
send you a bottle of Marsala, which Dr. Dickson recommends
in preference to French wine; but use it moderately, it may
perhaps not do you good.

I know you intended to have taken up your quarters with
Colonel Williams, and although I think you ought to have
applied to your old house, the Queen's Arms, yet I did not
wish to thwart your inclination. However, as you require
nursing and doctoring, I think you had better come to me,
as you will get a more commodious room than Colonel Wil-
liams can give you, and a house in which you will not be so
liable to catch cold. Besides, you will be nearer the Doctor,
who can more easily and frequently visit you at my house
than were you living at such a distance. I calculate you
will not reach Hassan Kaleh until Saturday evening, and I
hope you will be here by Sunday, or Monday early.

Thank you for the offer of your services to bind me to a
wife, but I do not mean to avail myself of your kindness
just now. Hoping soon to welcome you and see you set up in
health to prosecute your journey,

Believe me, my dear Wolff,

Your affectionate Friend,

James Bkant,

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 247

To show, also, the great interest taken in my
proceedings by that eminent philanthropist, Colonel
Williams, I also add his letter to Captain Grover :

Dear Captain Grover, Erzerooni, November 28th, 1844.

I have to thank you for your note of the 5th of Sep-
tember, which, owing I presume to delays at the Foreign
Office, only reached me by the Turkish Tatar yesterday;
since that date you must have received my letters announcing
Dr. Wolff's fortunate escape from Bokhara, and his arrival
at Meshed; not, however, before you undertook your bene-
volent journey to St. Petersburg, from whence the last
Galignani gives your return to London. I sent the good old
Doctor's journal to the Ambassador a fortnight since, under
flying seal, and directed to you; no doubt it is now on its
way to London. By the Golaum who brought this lengthy
letter, I received a private note from the gallant Doctor, telling
me that he should leave Teheraun in time to arrive at and
quit Tabreez by the 17th instant. I therefore sent off two
of the Governor's Cavasses, or guards, to the town of Baya-
zeed, on the Persian frontier, to escort the Doctor to my
house. His Excellency Kaimili Pasha sent letters to Baloul
Pasha, the Governor of Bayazeed, enjoining him to furnish
the necessary Guard through the Koordish tribes, and His
Excellency also caused orders to be addressed to all the vil-
lage Chiefs along the route, directing them to receive Dr.
Wolff as his friend, and to furnish him with everything he
might require (horses, &c. &c). I wrote to Wolff by the
Cavasses, so that he will be aware of all this kindness on the
part of our excellent Governor. Although I have not heard
of his arrival at Tabreez, I look for him about the 1st of
December, and will use my utmost endeavours to get him off
for Trebizonde on the 4th. Until I see him I shall be
anxious about his dress, for our weather is now as stormy
and cold as that through (here) which he passed on his way

248 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

to Bokhara, and I fear lie lias been fleeced of the skins I
rigged for him ! Then his excitement was equal to one great
coat; now the good pilgrim has for his travelling companions
regrets for the victims of Bokhara, and the daily misery of
riding and resting in the filthy stable-hovels of Armenia!
He has performed a deed of almost unexampled goodness,
and I hope he may meet with a commensurate reward, — I
mean in this world. Whilst I am writing you these hurried
lines a storm of snow is raging without, and the desolate
appearance of the landscape would lead an Englishman (could
he view it) to estimate Wolff's courageous task. Next week
I hope to announce to you his passage over the first snowy
passes.

Believe me, very truly yours,

(Signed) W. F. Williams.

On Saturday, January 4th, I left Hassan Kaleh,
and arrived at the small village where I found a
Takhtravan sent to me by His Excellency the Kamil
Pasha of Erzroom, and Seraskier of Kurdistaun. On
the 5th of January I left that village in the Pasha's
Takhtravan, and set out for Erzroom. Colonel Wil-
liams, Mr. Redhouse, and Colonel Farrant came out
to meet me. I was in such a state of debility and
nervousness, and so eaten up by vermin all over the
body, that I was not able to walk. Colonel Wil-
liams rode, therefore, back to Erzroom before me,
and ordered immediately a good Turkish bath, gave
me his own linen, and then brought me to his hos-
pitable dwelling, where I found my dear old friends,
Mr. and Mrs, Redhouse, and my old friend Mr.

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 249

Brant, the Consul, Calvert, Dr. Dickson, Mr. Pea-
body, and the American missionary, who sent me
clothes. Colonel Far rant shook hands with me cor-
dially. He is a fine, open, English soldier. He was
the appointed Secretary of Legation to Teheraun.

For five days, poor Colonel Williams was engaged
in putting the vermin off my body, and it would have
been of no use if Dr. Dickson had not given me
an ointment to kill them. I was not allowed to
walk about in the streets, as they were covered with
ice, and slippery; but as we had a nice terrace,
Colonel Williams took me there every day, dressed
in Mrs. Redhouse's fur cloak, red comforter, fur
gloves, and Mr. Redhouse's big boots, which gave
me the appearance of a Russian nobleman. These
walks refreshed me so much, that it renewed in me
the hope, which I had given up, that I should be
able to bear the fatigues of the last stage of my
journey by land to Trebizond, when the doctor said
the sea air would thoroughly restore me to health,
strength, and good spirits. His Excellency, the
Pasha, sent to me his brother to inquire after the
state of my health ; and so did the other Turkish
authorities.

As I have already given a description of my dear
friends, James Brant and Colonel Williams, I must
say only a few words of Colonel Farrant, who was
sent by Government to Mosul, in order to ascertain

250 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

the reasons of the massacre of the Nestorian Chris-
tians by the Kurds. He is a fine, straightforward
fellow. He had heard a great deal of me, as he said,
and Sir John McNeil had told him the story of
the famous wasps which stung me twenty years ago,
at Bosra, on which account I had made such a
noise in the house that I awoke the whole family of
Colonel Taylor from sleep. It is singular that such
an insignificant story about the sting of wasps should
have travelled from Bosra to Bushire ; thence to Te-
heraun, and excited the attention of the great diplo-
matist, Sir John Mc Neil, so that I was reminded of
it, after twenty years, by Colonel Sheil at Teheraun,
by Colonel Farrant at Erzroom, and by Mr. Alison
at Constantinople ; and I dare say, as my friend Sir
John Mc Neil is at Edinburgh, he will have made
all the scientific societies of the Athens of the North
acquainted with it, and probably it has even reached
Downing Street.

Mr. Redhouse was formerly Dragoman to the
Porte. He has written a Turkish Dictionary, which
the Sultan has ordered to be printed ; and has also
published a Grammar of the Ottoman Language,
which I think that every person who wishes to be
employed in any Oriental Embassy ought to possess.
The British Government should appoint Mr. Red-
house Professor of the Turkish Literature in one of
our English Universities. I received at Erzroom

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 251

the following melancholy letter from Tabreez, which
nearly overpowered my already sinking spirits :

Dear Rev. Dr. Wolff, Tabreez, 31st December, 1844.

My brother desired me to write to you these few
lines, to accompany the memorandum book which you left in
his charge; and at the mean time to make you acquainted
with the very distressing news of Mrs. Bonham's death, who,
on the 26th, was attacked by an eruptive typhus fever, the
nature of which was so very severe that medical assistance
had too slight an effect ; and after lingering for nine days,
expired yesterday morning at six o'clock. The corpse was
so soon putrefied, on account of the severity of the fever, that
they were compelled to inter it last night at midnight. I let
you imagine the grief that this catastrophe caused to Mr.
Bonham, and all the Europeans.

Mr. D'Ozeroff begged my brother to write to you by this
opportunity, to present to you his best regards, and to ask
you whether you have taken with you the parcel of letters of
recommendation which you received while at Tabreez from
the Russian Mission; should this be the case, Mr. D'Ozeroff
would feel exceedingly obliged to you, should you return
them to him by the first opportunity, as Count de Medem
particularly desired him to send him back the fore-mentioned
letters, should you not undertake your journey for England
through Russia. My brother sincerely wishes you a merry
new year's day, and many returns of the day ; and so does

Your most obedient servant,
Robert Casolani.

P.S. Your messages, with which I was charged, have
been duly delivered. I hope you have till now quite regained
your lost strength. All the Europeans send their best regards
to you. R. C.

252 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

During my stay at Erzroom, Ameer Abul Kasem,
the Ambassador from Bokhara for Her Majesty
Queen Victoria, arrived there ; for, though he was
told by Colonel Sheil that he would not be received
by the Court of St. James, he nevertheless was
determined to proceed on his way to Constantinople,
as he had also letters for the Sultan.

Previous to my departure from Erzroom, I re-
ceived the following kind letter from Sir S. Canning :

My dear Sir, Buyukdere, Oct. 1, 1844.

I hope this letter will meet you on your return from
Bokhara ; if not, the Turkish letters, which I now hasten to
forward, may possibly be of some service to you. At all
events, they will show the interests which Turks, as well as
Christians, take in your safety. Her Majesty's Government
have shown a laudable zeal on your behalf, by instructing me
officially to exert myself for you. I cannot help fearing, that
if the former letters have not helped you, these are not likely
to prove of much use. But, at all events, they may as well
be sent to you.

It must be consoling to you to observe the interest which
you have generally inspired; and I assure you that no persons
feel a larger share in that interest than Lady C. and myself.

May God protect you, my dear Sir, and restore you
to those who are capable of appreciating your talents and
virtues. Believe me, very sincerely yours,

Stratford Canning.

Never shall I forget my noble friend Sir S. Can-
ning. I feel towards him an enthusiasm that I
never felt to any other ; and how should I feel
otherwise to one who has given a greater blow to

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 253

Mohammedanism than any Ambassador ever did?
With one word he, with the assistance of the great
Guizot at Paris, has overthrown one of the funda-
mental laws of Muhammedanism.'

I called, with Colonel Williams, Colonel Farrant,
and Mr. Brant, on His Excellency Kamil Pasha.
He told me that the Ambassador from Bokhara had
just called on him, when he asked him about the
extent and power of Bokhara ; upon which he gave
the following exaggerated statement : That the
kingdom of Bokhara was six hundred farsaghs in
length, and that the King of Bokhara has two hun-
dred thousand regular troops in continual pay, and
eight hundred pieces of artillery. Kamil Pasha
then asked what had become of Stoddart and
Conolly, when he gave the following lying state-
ment : That Stoddart had arrived at Bokhara. Soon
after his arrival the King observed that many of the
Serkerdeha had become rebellious ; he inquired into
the matter, and His Majesty discovered that Colonel
Stoddart had been the instigator of the rebellion.
With regard to Conolly, he gave the following state-
ment : That Conolly had been at Khokand ; when the
King from Bokhara arrived with his army there,
that Conolly was made a prisoner, and he did not
know his fate. He denied altogether that he had
been sent to England, and simply said that his mis-
sion was to the Sultan.

254 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

The evening- before my departure from Erzroom,
all my English friends, and also Colonel Dainesi, the
Russian Commissioner, and Signor Garibaldi, the
Russian Vice-Consul, Signor Bertoni, and the Ameri-
can missionaries, assembled in the house of Colonel
Williams, where they dined, and drank most cor-
dially my health.

On the 27th January a cavass from Kamil
Pasha, and another cavass of Mr. Brant, the Consul,
with a Takh travan driver, arrived at the door of
Colonel Williams. Colonel Williams, Colonel Far-
rant, Mr. Brant, Calvert, Guarracino, Garibaldi,
Bekir Pasha, a Turkish gentleman who was in
England, mounted their horses, and I entered my
Takhtravan, and they accompanied me three hours
to Elijeh. My kind-hearted friends then took a
hearty leave of me, embraced me, and then returned
to Erzroom, whilst I prosecuted my journey towards
Trebizond. Colonel Farrant, a lively, cordial sol-
dier, became a great friend of mine, so that I called
him my nephew, and he called me his uncle.

I continued my journey, and arrived, on the 28th
of January, at Mey-Mansoor, inhabited by Mussul-
mans. On the 29th we arrived at Saaza; on the
30th at Massad. On the 31st we arrived at Beyboot,
where I lodged in the house of an Armenian, not of
the best disposition. On the 1st of February we
were obliged to remain at Beyboot. Doctor Frank-

OF PR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 255

furter, a Jew from Presburg, in Hungary, was sta-
tioned there by the Turkish Government as medical
man to superintend the place of quarantine. On
the 2nd of February we arrived at Jaajee Koy. On
the 3rd of February we arrived at Gumush Khane,
where I lodged in the house of a respectable Turk.
He was an old man. His name was Mustapha. On
the 4th of February we arrived at Artasa. On the
5th we arrived at Yerkopri. On the 6th of Febru-
ary at Yeseer Oglu. I received at this place the
following letter from Mr. Stevens, the Vice-Consul
of Trebizond :

My dear Sir, Trebizond, 6 Feb., 1845,

I received late last evening your note from Ardassi,
and I hasten to send you out my cavaz, Mehmed Agha, with
the enclosed letters, which have accumulated here for you;
and also to write you these lines to welcome you back to
Trebizond, where I hope you will arrive in safety to-morrow
morning. I shall be at the Lazzaretto, and bring with me
my colleagues. An apartment is being prepared for you. I
presume the Ambassador from Bokhara will arrive to-day.

My cavaz has orders to communicate with you, and place
himself under your orders in quarantine. Send him into the
Lazzaretto at least an hour before you reach to-morrow, to
give me warning.

Mrs. Stevens and my sisters send you compliments.

Yours faithfully,

Fkas. J. Stevens.

256 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

CHAPTER XXVIII.

Arrival at Trebizond. Folly of Land Quarantine there. Ambassador
from Bokhara arrives. One of his old Friends the Makhrams calls
on Dr. Wolff ; Dr. Wolff feels reluctant to renew the Intimacy.
Visits received by Dr. Wolff when in Quarantine. Letter from
Colonel Farrant. Letter from Sir Stratford Canning. Bokhara
Ambassador gets Pratique one day before Dr. Wolff. Singular
Conduct of the Pasha of Trebizond. Letter from Mr. Brant. De-
parture for Constantinople. Sinope and Samsoon. Arrival at Con-
stantinople. Dr. Wolff preaches on board the Virago. Letter from
Sir Stratford Canning. Dr. Wolff waits upon Their Excellencies
Sir Stratford and Lady Canning. Letter from the Honourable Mr.
Wellesley. Kindness of the Legation. Letter from the Reverend
H. D. Leeves. Arrival of seven Franciscan Friars at Constan-
tinople, expelled from Russia for their refusal to take the Oath of
Allegiance to the Czar. Sympathy excited for them. Power of
the Romish Church greatly curtailed by the Czar. Letter from Sir
•Stratford Canning. Visit to Saint Sophiao The Missionaries call
on Dr. Wolff. Schauffler ; his extraordinary Acquirements in
Language. Kindness of Count Sturmer. Sir Stratford Canning
induces Sultan to abolish Punishment of Death for Apostacy ; the
Declaration of the Porte. Introduction of Dr. Wolff to the Grand
Vizier, the Reis Effendi, the Shekeeb Effendi, and the Sheikh
Islam. Introduction to Greek Patriarchs. Liturgies of St. Chry-
sostom, St. Basil, and St. Gregory. The Patriarch visits Dr. Wolff.
Dr. Wolff preaches at the Legation, and in other Places. Kindness
of Lady Canning. Letter from the Honourable Mr. Wellesley.
Dr. Wolff embarks for England. Arrives at Smyrna. Meets there
Lord Clarence Paget and the Reverend H. D. Leeves. Quarantine
at Malta. Lord Lorton visits Dr. Wolff in Quarantine. The Bishop
of Gibraltar also sees him in Quarantine. Then sails for Gibraltar ;
on his arrival there receives Letters from the Governor, Sir Robert
Wilson, and the Reverend Dr. Burrow. Reaches Southampton on
on April 9th ; meets there Captain Grover, Lady Georgiana, and his
Son. Starts for London. Returns Thanks to Almighty God for his
Preservation in Trinity Church, Gray's Inn Road. Public Meeting
at Exeter Hall. Noble Character of Captain Grover. Letter from
the Reverend R. W. Stoddart, Vicar of ITundon. Conclusion.

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 257

I arrived on the 7th of February at the place of
quarantine at Trebizond. It is strange to hear of
quarantine on land ; and it is one of the most foolish
things I ever heard of, for until a caravan arrives at
Trebizond, it must have touched all the neighbour-
ing places, which are not in quarantine. All the
answer I can give is, that all the attempts of the
Turks at civilization appear farcical. A room was
assigned to me close by the Ambassador of Bokhara.
He did not himself come near me, but what is very
extraordinary, a Makhram sent after us by the
Ameer called on me, and he told me that he believes
that the Nayeb, Abdul Samut Khan, will have met
with his deserts already, or will certainly meet with
punishment shortly. I confess that I was not easy
in his company ; though I know that people will
think that I had imaginary fear, I am not ashamed
to confess it. For one thing must be observed,
which I have omitted to mention in speaking of
Bokhara ; that the King and Abdul Samut Khan are
connected with the people called the Ismaelee, whom
he sends for some great purposes always to murder
people whom he suspects, like the Old Man of the
Mountain, the chief of the Assassins. Thus, for
instance, one of his Serkerdeha, whom he suspected,
and who had fled to Shahr-Sabz, was murdered
in the palace of the Khan of Shahr-Sabz, and the
Vol. II. S

258 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

head was brought in triumph to Bokhara two
months before my arrival. It was said that he was
suspected to have been a friend of Stoddart.

I have already adverted to the circumstance that
one of the Ameer's brothers was murdered at Kho-
kand, and another at Orenbourg, and besides this,
that Makhram, whose name was Shereef Sultaun,
whenever he came to me, desired me to send away
my servants. It may be objected that the Ameer
would not do such a thing, for he would put in
jeopardy his own Ambassador ; but to this I answer,
such an argument is quite ridiculous, for a savage
like the Ameer does not care a straw for the life of
his Ambassador. It may be objected also, that the
Nayeb would not do such a thing, for he is in the
power of the Ameer ; but to this I answer, that it
remains still to be seen whether the Ameer will put
to death the Nayeb or the Nayeb the Ameer. Both
are bent upon each other's destruction, and the self-
interests of both cause each to delay the execution
of the deed.

During my stay in the quarantine, I was visited
by the English, Turkish, and Russian Consuls, and
also the excellent American missionaries, Messrs.
Benjamin and Bliss, who all of them sent me daily
European dinners, and visited me daily ; and during
my stay in the quarantine, I received a letter from
Colonel Farrant, which I subjoin,

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 259

My dear Doctor, Erzeroom, 31st January, 1845.

I write you a few lines to enquire after my good old
uncle's health, and hope sincerely this may find you safe and
sound at Trebizonde. We all miss you very much here.
No news from Persia. Our Gholam arrived in twenty-seven
days from Teheran, and was twelve days between Turco-
manchaie and Tikmedash. What a lucky escape you had.
Bonham writes me that he is broken and destroyed and takes
his little boy home in May. I see the book you expected has
arrived here for you. Good bye, my dear Doctor; I wish
you health and every good, and a happy meeting with Lady
Georgiana and Master Charles Henry Drummond, and that
your severe trials may meet with their just reward, for you
have performed a long and perilous journey. God bless you.
Always yours most sincerely,

J. Farkant.
Mind you do not tell the riddle, "My first it." * * *
We have had no earthquakes since you left. Mollah Medhee
sends a million selaams, and begs me to tell you that those
two turquoise rings were sent you by the Chief Priest's
brother of Meshed. Adieu ; take care of yourself.

J. F.

On another occasion the following reached me
from Sir Stratford Canning :

My dear Sir, Constantinople, February 7, 1845.

I had much pleasure in receiving your letter from
Erzroom, and I congratulate you most cordially on having
surmounted with so much fortitude the many difficulties,
privations, and dangers with which you have had to contend
in the course of your benevolent and bold enterprise. It is
well that men of your generous character should be under
the special safeguard and direction of Providence.

We shall be happy to see you here, and to assist in ren-
dering your pause at Constantinople gratifying and comfort-

S2

260 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

able to you. I understand that you are to put up at the
Southgates, though I know not how this is to be managed in
the absence of the Bishop.

The box of shawls has never reached us; if it had,
Lady Canning would have had much pleasure in forwarding
it without availing herself of your kind permission.

Dr. Bennett has abandoned for the present his thoughts
of retiring. I understand that your converted friend has
returned to Meshed, and I think Colonel Williams has coun-
selled you wisely in that respect. I do not wonder at your
expressing yourself so strongly in favour of the Colonel.
He has always taken the strongest interest in you. With
every good wish from Lady Canning and the children, I beg
you will believe me, very sincerely yours,

Stratford Canning.

One day before our pratique, the Bokhara
ambassador received his, as he had entered one
day before me. During his stay in the quarantine,
he received every day his victuals from the Pasha,
Abdullah by name, who, a few weeks before my
arrival, was forced by the Porte to make an apo-
logy to the British Vice-Consul in person, for having
grossly insulted him. This person differed widely
from the former Pasha of Erzroom. He cannot
conceal his hatred against Christians, and especially
Europeans ; and therefore, whilst he treated the Bo-
khara ambassador with all distinction, he took not
the slightest notice of me.

I must give an instance in point, to illustrate
the character of the Bokhara ambassador. He had
left Bokhara with seven attendants. With these he

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 261

reached Teheraun. To my greatest surprise he
arrived at Trebizond with four- and- twenty. He
managed this in the following manner. He col-
lected at Bokhara several of the Bokhara and Khiva
merchants, whom he told, " If you pay me a certain
sum of money, I shall get your merchandise free
into Bokhara. On my arrival at Constantinople I
told the Vizier and the Reis Effendi.

I omitted to give the following characteristic
letter from our consul at Erzroom.

My dear Wolff, Erzeroom, 31st January, 1845.

I hope you this morning started from Baiboot, and
you ought to be at Trebizond on the evening of the 5th
February. I shall be very anxious to hear that you have
got on in comfort; a man reported you well at Maimansoor.
The second evening I feared you would not get to Khoshap-
poonah. Do get to England as fast as you can, and do not
daudle at Trebizond and Constantinople. Once with Lady
Georgiana you will be happy and comfortable, and will be
properly attended to; and I trust you will soon regain your
health, and forget the cut-throats of Bokhara. Write to
me when you are at home, and let me know where your
living is situated, for I shall one day come and see you.
Remember me to our excellent kind friend David Baillie.

God bless and preserve you, my dear old fellow, and
restore you to your wife and child, and may you enjoy many
many years of health and comfort in a snug living, and after
a long life of usefulness may you descend honoured to the
grave, soothed by the recollection of a well-spent life and the
opening hopes and prospects of a better. With sincere
respect and esteem, believe me, my dear Wolff,

Your affectionate friend,

James Bbant.

262 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

After I had ]eft quarantine, I took up my abode
with Mr. Stevens, from whom I experienced the most
cordial reception ; and after having visited the Greek
Church, I set out in an Austrian steamer for Con-
stantinople with Captain Clician. The Bokhara
ambassador embarked with his whole escort, but he
had no room in the cabin.

The steamer stopped for a few hours at two
remarkable places, Samsoon and Sinope, in Paphla-
gonia. Amisus is the ancient name of Samsoon,
which was colonized by the Athenians, and embel-
lished by Mithridates, taken by Lucullus, then by
Antony, ruined by the tyrant Strabo, again exalted
by Augustus after the victory near Actium. Both
places, Sinope as well as Samsoon, were governed
after this by the son of Isphandiar, then taken by
Bayazid the Lame, then by Bayazid the Lightning.
Khasee Thselebe, nephew of Khayaz Adden, of the
Seljuck dynasty, was master of Sinope. He carried
on piracy against the Genoese. There are in both
places many mines, and both places are inhabited by
Greeks and Turks, and Muhammedans of Greek
origin, who in secret profess the Greek religion.
Sinope is the birthplace of Diogenes. An inte-
resting account of both places is given by Joseph
Von Hammer, in his History of the Ottoman Empire.

I left Trebizond on the 20th, and arrived at
Constantinople on the 23rd February. The mo-

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 263

ment I arrived in the harbour of Constantinople, the
steamer Tagus was sailing for England, and as Her
Majesty's ship Virago was there, commanded by Cap-
tain Otway, I sent a note, announcing my arrival,
without knowing him personally. He immediately
sent a boat after me with a midshipman, and as
it was Sunday, I preached in Her Majesty's ship
Virago to the officers and crew ; and scarcely had
I done preaching, before the following note came
from my dear dear friend, Sir Stratford Canning.

My dear Sir, British Embassy, Sunday, February 23, 1845.

I rejoice to hear that you arrived at Constantinople
this morning, and hope that you are well enough to partake
of our dinner to-day at seven. Come to us if you can, and
afford me an opportunity of saying in person how cordially
I congratulate you on your providential escape from so many
dangers and perilous fatigues.

Believe me, faithfully yours,

Stratford Canning.

When I had finished preaching, breakfasted,
and received a shaving from one of the sailors,
I called on their Excellent Excellencies Sir Strat-
ford and Lady Canning. Her Ladyship at once
told me that she had prepared a room in the
palace for me, but as a new Attache', Mr. Doug-
las, had arrived, her Ladyship could not receive me
in the palace, but had taken rooms for me in the
Hotel d'Angleterre, where all my expenses should
be paid. A Mr. Misiri's, the British Hotel, T met

264 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

Lord Clarence Paget, Lord Maidstone, Lord Anson,
Mr. Rashleigh, M.P., Mr. Ponsonby, Mr. Ham-
mond, &c.

On the 24th of February I received the enclosed
letter of the 4th February, from the Honourable Mr.
Wellesley, First Secretary to the Legation.

Dear Sir, Pera, February 24, 1846.

Although I have not the advantage to be personally-
known to you, I trust that your acquaintance with my
mother will excuse my setting aside all forms, and proposing
to you to come and dine with me to-morrow at seven o'clock.
It will give Mrs. Wellesley and myself the greatest plea-
sure to have this opportunity of making your acquaintance.
Believe me, dear Sir,

Very faithfully yours,

H. Wellesley.

I give these documents to show the great spirit
of kindness and affection which warmed every breast
in the Legation, from its distinguished chief down-
wards, to a humble individual like myself.

The last communication I ever received from an
individual whose virtues made me as proud of his
acquaintance as that of any of the most distinguished
parties here, my late lamented and beloved friend,
the Reverend H. D. Leeves, chaplain of Athens, I
give at length.

My dear Dr. Wolff, Smyrna, March 15, 1845.

Hearing that you are in the neighbourhood, I write

you a line to congratulate you sincerely upon your escape

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 265

from the perils of your adventurous journey, and to say that
I hope that I shall soon do the same in person, together with
my daughter Mary Anne. We are here together on our
way to Syria and Jerusalem, and are staying at the hos-
pitable house of Mr. Lewis. We learn that you come
down here by the boat which leaves Constantinople on
Monday, and will therefore be here on Wednesday, and I
was charged by Mr. Lewis this morning to say, that he
meant to write to you, but as I proposed doing so on my
coming into town, he has charged me to say, that he hopes
on your arrival you will come up to Boujah, and take up
your quarters with him. This I hope, also, you will do,
as we shall then be under the same roof, and be together
during our stay. We cannot leave for Syria till the 27th,
and you, I suppose, will like to halt here for a short time
before you proceed to England.

I shall send this to the care of the Ambassador, from
whom as well as from Lady Canning you are I doubt not
receiving every kindness and assistance. With every good
wish, and expecting very soon to shake you by the hand,
I am, dear Wolff,

Yours affectionately,

H. D. Leeves.

Seven Franciscan friars arrived at Constantino-
ple, who were expelled from Russia for having
refused to take the oath of allegiance to the Emperor.
Great sympathy was excited among the Roman
Catholics at Constantinople about them. There is
no doubt that the Papal power has received a blow,
and will receive a still mightier, in the Russian
Empire.

266 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

I received, on the 1st of March, the following
letter of Sir Stratford Canning :

Dear Sir, Pera, Saturday, March 1, 1845.

Your letters shall be duly forwarded when the mes-
senger goes. If I thought you would be ready with your
sermon — a regular church discourse — to-morrow, I would
willingly propose to Dr. Bennett to lend you the pulpit then,
without waiting for another week; but I have not yet seen
the Doctor; the rain has, perhaps, detained him in the
country.

I understand that you wanted a firman for travelling
with; but if you go away by sea, how can you want a firman?

"With respect to the dedication of your Journal, my name,
if you really desire it, is at your service; but I should like
to see the record of so much humanity and resolution placed
under the auspices of a nobler or a brighter name.

I think you told me that you are to dine with the
Russian Envoy to-day. I hope we shall have the pleasure
of seeing you at dinner to-morrow.

Believe me, dear Sir,

Faithfully yours,

Stratford Canning.

Lords Clarence Paget, Maidstone, Anson, and
Ponsonby, Captain Otway, Mr. Rashleigh, M.P., and
others, visited the Great Mosqne of Saint Sophia,
and they invited me to go with them, which I did.
Thus have I now seen the greatest churches upon
earth — St. Peter's at Rome, St. Paul's at London,
and St. Sophia's at Constantinople.

My missionary friends, Schauffler, Goodell, and
Dwight, also called on me. Mr. Southgate has since

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 267

been made Bishop, by the Episcopal Church of
America, for all Turkey and its dependencies. Mr.
Southgate is a worthy man, but I abstain from any
judgment about the institution of Bishoprics under-
taken by either the Church of England or America,
as I reserve that for a future work, in which I shall
develope the utility of these Bishoprics, and the
impression they have made among the Eastern
Churches.

I have only to say a few words of Schauffler.
This is an extraordinary man. When I went from
Persia through the Crimea, and arrived at Odessa, I
met there a young man, a German, William Schauf-
fler by name, who copied my Journal, though he did
not completely understand English. He was a
turner by trade. He studied at the Andover semi-
nary, in America, under Moses Stuart; and after
this at Paris, under Silvestre de Sacy. He then
went to Vienna, and translated the whole Bible into
Jewish Spanish. He now knows twenty-four lan-
guages, and is beyond all doubt the most eminent
missionary in the Levant. I cannot but speak with
gratitude of him and the rest of the missionaries for
their kindness.

Count Sturmer, the Austrian Internuntio, and
his Countess, Mr. Titoff, the Russian Ambassador,
and Madame Titoff, frequently invited me to dinner,
when our conversation was on topics of the highest

268 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

importance. William Palmer, of Magdalen College,
I observe is well known by the Russian Church, and
is highly esteemed.

Sir Stratford Canning's exertions, in union with
the French and Russian Ambassadors, to effect the
abolition of the barbarous law of putting Christians
to death who embraced Muhammedanism and then
returned to Christianity, were crowned with the
most distinguished success. The following declara-
tion was issued by the Sublime Porte :

It is the special and constant intention of His High-
ness the Sultan, that his cordial relations with the High
Powers should be preserved, and that a powerful reciprocal
friendship be maintained and increased. The Sublime Porte
engages to take effectual measures to prevent henceforward
the execution and putting to death of the Christian who is
an Apostate.

Several Armenians were at Erzroom, who had
embraced the Muhammedan religion. They were
taken by Colonel Williams and Mr. Brant from the
palace of the Pasha, and have now openly returned
to the Christian religion. There ought to be esta-
blished a Society for the protection of Eastern
Christians and Jews.

By order of Sir Stratford Canning, I was intro-
duced by Messrs. Frederick and Stephen Pisani to
Their Excellencies the Grand Vizier, Raoof Pasha,
and to the Reis EfFendi, Shekeeb Effendi, who was

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 269

formerly in England, and to the Sheikh Islam. All
of them expressed their great sympathy with my
sufferings, and their delight to see me again. His
Excellency got me introduced to the Greek Patri-
arch, the successor of St. Chrysostom in the church
of Constantinople, who made me a present of the
Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom, Basil the Great,
and Gregory Theologos, of which I insert an ab-
stract, and refer my readers for further particulars
to Appendix No. I.

Service Booh, comprising the Divine and Holy Eucharistical
Services of John Chrysostom, Basil the Great, and Gregory
Dialogus (alias Theologos), namely, for the Sanctified.
Moreover, the Orders for all the Ordinations; the Office of
the Marriage Vow, and Crowning; the Office of the Lesser
Purification, and Portion of the Communion; and other
necessary Prayers for the Chief Priests. Now published
for the use of the Chief Priests, by the combined care of
the Most Holy Superintendents of the Patriarchal Typo-
graphy at Constantinople, 1820, at the Greek Press in
the Patriarchate, by permission and order of the Holy
Synod.

To our most venerable Fathers, the most holy Patriarchs,
and to our most beloved Brethren, all the Chief Priests,
befitting homage and due salutation. It is fit that the hus-
bandman that labours should first partake of the fruits, as
the holy Apostle has already spoken. They cultivate, some
here, some there, as to every one it is committed; and they
gather as much fruit as the tillage is calculated to produce.
Since, then, we have undertaken to labour at the common
patriarchal typography of the nation; but there have joined

270 NARRATIVE OP THE MISSION

themselves, and do join themselves, all, so to speak, by
spontaneous love of excellence, and unanimous alacrity ; but
more actively than the rest they who are comprehended
in the hierarchical order, as having sown the seed by their
labour as in this soil, it is fit that they before others should
reap also of the fruits. Moreover, the book called the
Archicraticon (Book of Offices) having fallen short, we
thought it right to publish this. Besides, we have intro-
duced many things, which in previous editions were omitted,
but which seemed necessary and indispensable; having
also corrected whatever was erroneous in them. And they
would have been distributed gratuitously to men of the
same order, to be the first-fruits, did it not appear safer that
the things belonging to individuals should be dispersed to the
public, than that the things of the public should be dispersed
to individuals. Thus, then, having chosen the safer part,
accept this book, and with us carry it forth, sowing in this
furrow a more abundant seed, that it may bear a larger crop.
Farewell!

The Superintendents of the Patriarchal
Typography.

His Holiness paid me back my visit. He, as well
as the Armenian Patriarch, spoke with high regard
of Dr. Tomlinson, and called him their dear brother.
The Greek Patriarch observed, " This is a Bishop
with some sense." His further remarks I shall no-
tice in a future publication. I also called on the
Armenian Patriarch, and on the Armenian Catholic;
all of them treated me with the greatest kindness,
and paid me the compliment that I had always acted
in my missionary pursuits in such a manner as not to

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 271

grieve the Eastern churches, since I had directed my
attention to those out of the Church.

I preached several times, not only in the English
Embassy, but also in the house of Sir Stratford
Canning, and expounded my views on the personal
reign of Christ, in the palace of Count Sturmer, and
Mr. Titoff, in the presence also of Prince Dolgorouki,
Mr. Lecoque, the Prussian Ambassador, and others.

On the eve of my departure, Sir Stratford and
Lady Canning had so arranged matters, that I had
nothing to pay either for my stay at Constantinople,
or my journey to England. Lady Canning herself
took care to have my trunks packed up, and sent a
present of an Armenian scarf to Lady Georgiana.
I received the inclosed letter from the Hon. Mr.
Wellesley :

My dear Sir, Constantinople, March 20, 1845.

Here is the letter you wished to have for my father.

I hope to find a moment this morning to wish you Good-bye;

in case, however, I should he prevented, pray accept Mrs.

"Wellesley 's and my best wishes for a prosperous journey

home.

Yours very faithfully,

H. Wellesley.

I then embarked in the Oriental Peninsular Com-
pany's steamer, The Duke of Cornwall, for England.
We stopped twelve hours at Smyrna. Immediately
on my arrival there, Lord Clarence Paget, whom I
had seen at Constantinople, sent a boat from his

272 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

ship, the Aigle, to invite me to breakfast, where I
met the Rev. W. Lewis, Chaplain, and my now dear
departed friend, the Rev. H. D. Leeves. I then
embarked again with two fellow-passengers, Captain
Irvine and Captain Macpherson, who took brotherly
care of me during the voyage to Malta, where they
disembarked.

I stopped in quarantine, at Malta, two days, to
wait for passengers from India, vid Alexandria.
During our short stay at Malta, Lord Viscount Lor-
ton, to whom I have the honour to be chaplain, and
the Right Rev. the Lord Bishop of Gibraltar, called
on me, and regretted that they could not shake
hands with me in quarantine. At last Sir Joseph
Sackville, Colonel Ovans, and seventy other pas-
sengers, arrived from Alexandria.

We sailed that same day, and arrived, on the
2nd of April, in the harbour of Gibraltar, where I
received the two following letters, one from His
Excellency the Governor, Sir Robert Wilson, which
I give :

Dear Sir,

It gives me great pleasure to afford you any gratifi-
cation. We had accompanied you in your generous career
with our best wishes, and trust your health has not been
impaired.

I have only to regret no personal communication is

admissible.

Yours truly,

Gibraltar, April 2nd, 1845. E. WlLSON, G, G.

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 273

And another from that most dear and interest-
ing individual, Dr. Burrow :

My dear Sir,

I cannot express my regret and disappointment at
not having it in my power to take you by the hand, and to
congratulate you on your arrival in safety under the guns
of a British fortress. I have looked with deep anxiety for
the vessel which might be bringing you home again from
your perilous but truly Christian enterprise. We all bless
God that He has been pleased to preserve you under the
many trying circumstances which have passed since we last
met, and trust that He has yet in store for you, even in this
life, the reward of your charitable labours.

Had it been possible, I would have put myself into a
boat, merely for the chance of having a few words with you
alongside, but unfortunately I am confined to the house by
a severe cold, which has settled in my face, and threatens to
prevent my doing duty, if not attended to.

I am sorry to say that I have no newspapers of my own
to offer you, but I will send and endeavour to procure some,
without loss of time.

Mrs. Burrow and my family unite in best wishes with,
Dear Sir, your very faithful servant,

E. J. Burrow.

Wednesday, April 2, 1845.

On the 9th of April I arrived off the Isle of
Wight; on the 11th I disembarked at Southampton,
where I met, on the shore, my most dear and excel-
lent friend, Captain Grover, and many other friends,
all cheering me; and, a few minutes after, my
dear wife and child. Captain Grover had procured
an order from the Lords of the Treasury that my

Vol. II. T

274 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

presents from the different Sovereigns and Ambassa-
dors should be duty free.

After this I arrived on the 12th in London. I
embraced the first opportunity that presented itself
of returning thanks to Almighty God for my preser-
vation at Bokhara, and in the deserts of Merwe and
Sarakhs, in Trinity church, of which my friend, the
Rev. J. W. Worthington, D.D., is the incumbent.
I preached there to a numerous congregation, and
have received, since my return to town, the visits of
many most distinguished individuals.

It was considered proper, on the part of the
Stoddart and Conolly Committee, that a public
meeting should take place in Exeter Hall; I at-
tended it, and spoke for several hours, and was
heard with the deepest attention.

To my kind friend, Captain Grover, at the con-
clusion of this Narrative, which never would have
been furnished to the public but for his manifold
kindness in numerous ways, I cannot but publicly
express my feeling that the most disinterested, gene-
rous, noble-minded, and zealous friend which Stod-
dart and Conolly could have had, and which I could
have had during the whole period of my wandering,
detention in Bokhara, and after my arrival home,
and the most zealous friend the British Army could
have, is that gentleman. One who was no niggard
from his disinterested character of his scanty income ;

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 275

one who has reproved the lukewarmiiess and indif-
ference of others, whose duty it was to have shown
greater zeal in the cause of Colonel Stoddart and
Captain Conolly. I must here state to the public,
that Captain Grover spent four hundred pounds out
of his own pocket for defraying the expense of my
journey ; and besides that, more than two hundred
pounds, in order to interest the Russian Government
in my behalf on his journey for that object to St.
Petersburg.

Among the various letters that I have received
since my return, I have to lay before the public one
from a worthy member of the Stoddart family, the
Rev. R. W. Stoddart, Vicar of Hundon :

Hundon Vicarage, Near Close, Suffolk,
Rev. and dear Sir, April (May) 7th, 1845.

As a cousin of the ill-fated and much-lamented
Colonel Stoddart, one of the Bokhara victims, I take the
liberty of writing to you, to express, as one of his relatives,
a deep sense of gratitude due to you especially, in the risking
your life in search of him and his fellow captives. Only
weekly receiving a paper in this retired spot, I have just
read with deep regret, that the harmony of the meeting
at Exeter Hall should have been so unfortunately inter-
rupted by my cousin, the Rev. George Stoddart. I am
at a loss to know the grounds of his charge against Captain
Grover, evidently based upon something which he has seen
in the red book published by that gentleman; but I feel
that nothing justifies his interruption of a meeting so har-
monious as it appears otherwise to have been, in expressing
the high sense of gratitude due to yourself, and Captain

T 2

276 NARRATIVE OF THE MISSION

Grover as a promoter of your self-sacrificing journey, wherein
your own life was in danger.

Whatever advice of my cousin's friends might have
caused him for a time to assume the garb of a Mussul-
man, yet I felt from the first that nothing would shew
but that he died in the faith of Jesus, which I am glad
to see confirmed by your statement ; and before any would
detract from his honour or Christian faith, let men bear in
mind, that a captive in a dungeon might be made to appear
outwardly in the garments of any faith, but inwardly his
heart was evidently unchanged. Also from the very first
I entertained no hope of his life having been spared, and
especially after the blood on our flag in the Affghanistan
war; for I observed, after reading that, that without doubt
poor Charles's fate was fixed: yet a superficial hope still
remained upon my mind, and every letter which you have
sent I have read with deep and painful interest. I think
also our best thanks are due to Captain Grover, for his
interest and sacrifice made in the good hope of rescuing a
fellow soldier from the tyrant's grasp. No praise I feel to
be too much to be given to you both; and perhaps you will
be kind enough, as I know not his address, to convey mine,
and in them the expression of the feelings of the relatives of
Colonel Stoddart, to him. My means are limited, but if
you will be kind enough to tell the Secretary of the Stod-
dart Fund to place my name down as a subscriber of a
sovereign to the testimonial you so justly deserve, I shall
feel obliged. I would that I could give ten times the
amount; and most happy should I be to see a subscription
to reimburse Captain Grover, to which I would willingly
give my mite. Hoping that you will meet in another and
better world with the reward due to your endeavours to
rescue the captives from their dungeon, is the prayerful

wish of

Yours very truly,

R. W. Stoddaet.

OF DR. WOLFF TO BOKHARA. 277

I have now to thank my readers for the patience
with which they have hitherto indulged me ; and I
trust that the time will never come when the lot of
the captive in the dungeon shall cease to command
the deep sympathy of a British public ; and that the
slight effort here made for the lives of the brethren
will in no wise be measured by its success, but by
the important principle it has developed, that there
exists not a recess so dark upon God's earth into
which Philanthropy will not pour its light; that
Eastern tyranny can neither daunt nor subdue the
Christian principle, but that it will force its way
like the mighty leaven that leaveneth the mass, not
only to the remotest ends of the earth, but possess
every particle in it with its own benevolence, charity,
and love.

APPENDIX.

The three Liturgies of St. Chrysostom, St.
Basil, and St. Gregory, with various Rites
and Ceremonies of the Greek Church, and
separate Prayers.

Passages from the Greek Liturgy, or Communion Ser-
vice of St. Chrysostom.

A Prayer which immediately precedes the singing of
the Cherubical Hymn, or Trisagium, beginning,
" Holy, holy, holy."

Oh, holy God, who hast thy resting place in the holy;
whose praises the seraphim chant in triple invocation ; who art
glorified by the cherubim, and worshipped by every heavenly
power; who from not being hast brought all things to be; who
createdst man after thine own image and similitude, and
adornedst him with every grace of thine own; who givest to
him that asketh wisdom and understanding, and dost not
neglect the sinner, but enduest him with repentance unto
salvation ; Thou who hast granted to us, thy poor and unwor-
thy servants, even at this time, to stand before the glory of
thy holy altar, and to offer thy due of worship and praise, do
Thou thyself, O Lord, receive, though from the mouth of us
sinners, this Trisagium, and look upon us in thy goodness.
Forgive us every transgression, voluntary and involuntary;

280 APPENDIX.

sanctify our souls and bodies; and grant us in holiness to serve
Thee all the days of our life, by the intercession of the holy
Mother of God, and of all the saints who, from the beginning,
have been pleasing to Thee; for Thou, our God, art holy, and
to Thee we give praise, to Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, now
and for ever.

A Prayer said by the Bishop during the singing* of
the Trisagium.

O King of Glory, none of those who are bound by fleshly
lusts and pleasures is worthy to approach or draw nigh to
Thee, or to officiate unto Thee; for to minister before Thee
is a great and fearful thing, even for the heavenly powers
themselves ; and yet, in thine unspeakable and unlimited love
for us, Thou didst become surely and substantially man, and
wert called our High Priest, and gavest to us the ministry of
this eucharistic and unbloody sacrifice, as being Lord of all.
For Thou alone, O Lord our God, art the Master of all things
in heaven and in earth, riding on the throne of the cherubim,
the Lord of seraphim and the King of Israel, alone holy,
and making thy resting-place among the holy. Thee, there-
fore, I venerate, who alone art good and ready to hear; look
upon me, a sinner and an unprofitable servant, and cleanse my
spirit and my heart from conscience of evil, and enable me,
by the power of thy holy Spirit, being endued with the grace
of the priesthood, to stand at this thy holy table, and to offer
thy holy and undefiled body and thy precious blood. For
Thee I approach with bended neck, and entreat Thee turn
not thy face from me, and reject me not from among thy
children. But grant that these gifts may be offered to Thee
by me, a sinful and unworthy servant, for Thou art He that
offerest and art offered, and receivest and distributest, O
Christ our God ; and to Thee do we give glory, together with
thy eternal Father, and the all-holy, and good, and life-giving
Spirit, now, henceforth, and for ever. Amen.

APPENDIX. 281

A Catholic Commemoration of the Servants of God.

(The Bishop says:)

And we offer to Thee this our reasonable service in behalf
of all those who have fallen asleep in the faith ; for our fore-
fathers, fathers, patriarchs, prophets, apostles, preachers, evan-
gelists, martyrs, confessors, ascetics, and every spirit made
perfect in faith.

( With an uplifted voice :)

Chiefly for her, our all-holy, undefiled, most blessed, and
glorious mistress, the Mother of God, the ever Virgin Mary.
( Then in the same tone as before:)

For the holy John, Prophet, Forerunner, and Baptist ; for the
glorious saints and ever blessed apostles; for the saint whom
we commemorate, and all thy saints, at whose supplication
may God look upon us. And remember all that have fallen
to sleep in hope of a resurrection to eternal life, and grant
them to rest, O our God, there, where the light of Thy coun-
tenance looketh upon them. Yet, again, we beseech Thee, O
Lord, remember the whole order of bishops among the ortho-
dox, who rightly divide the word of thy truth ; the whole order
of priests ; the diaconate in Christ, and every order Holy and
Monastic. Yet, again, we offer to Thee this reasonable ser-
vice in behalf of the whole world ; for the holy catholic and
apostolic Church; for those who live in chastity and sober
conversation ; for our most religious and Christian kings, for
all the palace, and their army. Grant them, O Lord, a king-
dom of peace, that we, also, in their peace, may lead a calm
and quiet life in all sanctity and soberness.

{Then with an uplifted voice:)

Especially, O Lord, remember our archbishop (here men-
tioning his name), whom bestow upon thy holy churches in
peace, in safety, in honour, in health, living long, and rightly
dividing the word of Thy truth.

282 APPENDIX.

[Here the Deacon reads out from the Roll the names of illustrious
living Members of the Church; after which the Bishop continues:)
Remember, O Lord, the city in which we sojourn, and every
city and country, and the faithful who live in them. Remem-
ber, Lord, all that travel by sea and land ; those who are sick,
in trouble, and in prison, and save them. Remember, Lord,
those who bring forth fruit and rightly serve Thee in thy holy
churches, and those who are mindful of the poor ; and upon
all of us send forth thy mercies ; and grant us to glorify
Thee with one mouth and with one heart, and to sing the
praise of thy honourable and glorious name, the name of
Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, now, henceforth, and for ever.
And the mercies of the great God, and of our Saviour Jesus
Christ, shall be with us all.

Passages from the Liturgy of St. Basil the Great.

A Prayer of the Bishop after the Cherubic Hymn
and the Oblation of the Elements.

O Lord our God, who hast made us and brought us into
this life, who hast shewed us the way of salvation, and of thy
grace hast revealed to us heavenly mysteries, and appointed
vis to this ministry with the power of thy Holy Spirit; be
moreover well pleased, O Lord, that we should be ministers
of thy new covenant, and celebrators of thy holy mysteries.
According to the multitude of thy mercy, receive us who
draw nigh to thy holy altar, that we may be worthy to offer
unto Thee this reasonable and unbloody sacrifice on behalf of
our own sins and the ignorances of the people ; receive it as
a sweet-smelling savour upon thy holy and reasonable altar
which is above the heavens, and send down in return upon us
the grace of thy Holy Spirit. Look upon us, O God, and
behold this our service, and accept it as Thou didst accept

APPENDIX. 283

the gifts of Abel, the victims of Noah, the sufferings of Abra-
ham, the sacrifices of Moses and Aaron, and the peace offer-
ings of Samuel. As Thou didst accept this real service from
thy holy Apostles, so in thy goodness, O Lord, accept also
these gifts from the hands of us, sinners that we are, that we,
being admitted to minister without blame at thy holy altar,
may receive the reward of faithful and wise stewards in the
dreadful day of thy righteous retribution.

A Prayer of the Bishop after the Versicles, Lift up
your hearts, Let us give thanks unto our Lord God.

O Thou who art our Master, Lord God, almighty and
adorable Father ; it is very meet, right, and suitable to the
majesty of thy holiness, that we should praise Thee, celebrate
Thee in song, bless Thee, worship Thee, give thanks unto
Thee, and glorify Thee, who alone art really God, and offer
unto Thee this our reasonable service with a contrite heart
and humble spirit; for it is Thou who hast granted us the
knowledge of thy truth ; and who is able to express thy noble
acts, or shew forth all thy praise, or to tell of all the marvel-
lous works that Thou hast done since the world began ? O
Ruler of all men, Lord of heaven and earth, and of all things
visible and invisible ; Thou who sittest upon the throne of
glory, and lookest upon infinity ; eternal, invisible, incompre-
hensible, indefinable, invariable ; the Father of our Lord Jesus
Christ, the great God and Saviour, our hope, who is the
image and exact impression of thy goodness, shewing the
Father in Himself, the living Word, very God, Wisdom from
before all worlds, Life, Sanctification, Power ; the true Light
from whom there has shone forth the Holy Spirit ; the Spirit
of truth, the gift of the adoption, the earnest of the inherit-
ance to come ; the first-fruits of good things which will never
pass away; the life-giving power, the fountain of sanctification
from whom all reasonable and sensible creation receiveth
power to do its services unto Thee, and to send up unto Thee

284 APPENDIX.

for evermore its praise, for all things are in subjection under
Thee. To Thee give praise angels and archangels, thrones*
dominions, principalities, powers, forces, and the cherubim,
full of eyes ; around Thee stand the seraphim, of whom each
one hath six wings, with twain they cover their faces, with
twain they cover their feet, and with twain do they fly, while
each one crieth unto another with lips that never cease, and
praises that sound for evermore,

{Here shall the voice be exalted,)
Singing the hymn of triumph, exclaiming, crying out, and
saying,

{Here probably the choir sang an hymn. Then shall he continue :)
With these blessed powers, O merciful Lord, we sinners
also do cry aloud, and say, Holy art Thou of a truth, and
altogether holy, and there is no bound to the majesty of thy
holiness, and holy in all thy works, for in righteousness and
true judgment hast Thou brought all things upon us. For
when, by taking the dust of the ground, and honouring it, God
though Thou wert, with thine own image, Thou hadst made
man, Thou didst place him in the garden of pleasure, and
didst promise unto him everlasting life, and the enjoyment of
eternal happiness, by the keeping of thy commandments.
But when he was disobedient to Thee the true God, his
Creator, and was led astray by the guile of the serpent, and
was dead in his own transgressions, in thy righteous judgment
Thou, O God, didst put him forth from the garden into this
world, and badest him return unto the ground from which he
was taken, instituting at the same time the economy for his
salvation by regeneration, to be brought about by thy Christ
Himself. For Thou didst not utterly cast away thy creatures
which Thou hadst made, O good Lord, nor didst Thou cease
to remember the work of thine hands : but Thou didst look
upon him in divers manners through the bowels of thy com-
passion ; Thou didst send forth from Thee prophets and
didst work miracles by thy saints who found favour in thy
eves in each generation ; Thou spakest unto us by the mouth

APPENDIX. 235

of thy servants the prophets, declaring unto us before-hand
the salvation which was to come ; Thou gavest for our help
the law ; Thou didst place over us the angels as guardians ;
but when the fulness of time was come Thou didst speak to
us by thy Son Himself, by whom also Thou madest the worlds,
who, being the brightness of thy glory, and the express image
of thy person, and upholding all things by the word of his
power, thought it not robbery to be equal with God and the
Father. But God, though He was from everlasting, yet He
appeared upon the earth, and had his conversation among the
children of men ; for, being incarnate of a holy Virgin, He
emptied Himself, and took upon Him the form of a servant,
and was found in the humble fashion of us men, that he might
make us be found in the glorious fashion of his own image.
For since through man sin entered into the world, and death
by sin, it pleased thy only-begotten Son, who was in the
bosom of Thee, God and Father, being born of a woman, the
holy Mother of God, and ever Virgin Mary, and being under
the law to condemn sin in his own flesh, so that they who
were dead in Adam might be made to live in thy Christ. And
when He had formed to Himself a kingdom in this world, and
given the ordinances of salvation, and brought us back from
wandering after idols, He led us on to the knowledge of Thee
the true God and Father. And having gotten us for Himself
as a peculiar people, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, and
having made us clean by water, and having sanctified us by
the Holy Spirit, He gave Himself as a ransom for us from the
death in which we were holden, sold under sin ; and going
down by means of the cross into hell, that He might be the
fulfilling of all things, He overcame the sharpness of death,
and by rising again on the third day He opened a way for all
flesh to the resurrection from the dead. And since it was not
possible that He, the Author of life, should be holden of cor-
ruption, He became the first-fruits of them that slept, the
first-born of the dead, that in all things He might have the
pre-eminence. And when He had ascended into heaven He

286 APPENDIX.

sate down at the right hand of thy Majesty on high. And He
shall come also to repay every man according* to his works.
He left behind Him for us these memorials of his saving
passion, which we have offered before Thee according to his
commandments. For when He was about to go forth to his
voluntary, and memorable, and life-giving death, in the night
in which He gave Himself up for the life of the world, He
took bread in his holy and undeflled hands, and having
offered it up to Thee, God and Father, having given thanks,
and blessed it, and consecrated it, and broken it,

{Here shall he exalt his voice,)
He gave it to his holy disciples and apostles, saying,

(Here follow the usual formulce of consecration of the elements.)

Another Prayer at a later period of the Service.

O God, the God of our salvation, teach us to give thanks
unto Thee, as we ought, for the benefits which we have
received, and are receiving at thy hand. Thou, who art our
God, and hast received these gifts, cleanse us from all defile-
ment of the flesh and spirit, and teach us to fulfil all righteous-
ness in the fear of Thee, so that, receiving our share of thy
holy things with the witness of a pure conscience, we may be
made one with the holy body and blood of thine anointed, and
having been worthy recipients of the same, may wre have
Christ dwelling within our hearts, and may we become the
temple of thy Holy Spirit; so let it be, O God. And let
none of us be guilty of these thy fearful and heavenly mys-
teries, nor let there be any among us weak in soul or body,
from having shared in them unworthily, but grant that until
our last breath we may worthily receive our portion of thy
holy elements, so that they may be our viaticum to eternal life,
and enable us to make an acceptable answer at the tremen-
dous judgment seat of Jesus Christ, so that we, with all the
saints who have found favour before Thee in every genera-
tion, may be partakers of those good things which Thou hast
prepared for evermore for those who love Thee, O Lord.

APPENDIX. 287

Passages from the Missa Prcesanctificatorum, used only
on days of fasting.

O Lord, compassionate and merciful, of long suffering and
great pity, incline unto our prayer, and listen to the voice
of our supplication. Shew upon us some sign for good. Lead
us in thy path, that we may walk in thy truth. Make glad
our hearts within us, that we may fear thy holy name, for
Thou art great, and dost wondrous things. Thou only art
God, and among the gods there is none like unto Thee, O
Lord. Thy power is merciful, and thy loving kindness is
strong, to help, comfort, and serve all those who put their
trust in thy holy name.

Prayer of the Introit.

At evening, and morning, and noonday we praise, bless,
give thanks unto, and make supplication unto Thee, O Ruler
of all, O Lord, who lovest mankind ; let our prayers arise up
before Thee as incense, and let not our hearts be inclined to
any evil thought or word ; but deliver us from all those who
seek after our souls to do them' evil, for upon Thee, O Lord,
upon Thee our eyes do wait ; we have put our trust in Thee,
O God ; let us not be confounded. For there is all glory, &c.

Another Prayer.

O great and adorable God, who, by the life-giving death
of thy Son, hast made us pass from corruption into incorrup-
tion, make all our senses free from whatsoever of death
remains in them, and maintain as a trustworthy Ruler over
them the Reason which Thou hast placed within us. Let no
evil look glance from the eye, no idle word mount up into the
ear, and let the tongue be pure from all unseemly sayings.
Make our lips clean wherewith we bless thee, O Lord. Keep
our hands from all wicked actions, and make them labour

288 APPENDIX.

only at such things as are well pleasing unto Thee, and by thy
grace preserve nil our members and our understanding in
perfect safety.

A Prayer for the Benediction of the Branches on
Palm Sunday.

O Lord our God, who sittest upon the cherubim, who didst
raise up thy power and didst send forth thy only begotten
Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, that He might save the world by
his death, burial, and resurrection, who, as He came into
Jerusalem to his voluntary sufferings, was met by the people
who sate in darkness and the shadow of death, bearing the
signs of victory, branches of trees and boughs of palm, fore-
showing thereby his resurrection; preserve now us also, O
Lord, who after this example are carrying in our hands this
day before the feast boughs and branches of trees, and
watch over us as we shout Hosanna unto Thee, as did the
crowds and children at that day, so that with hymns and
spiritual songs we may be thought worthy to celebrate the
life-giving resurrection of the three days, through Christ Jesus
our Lord, with whom Thou art to be praised with the all-
holy and good Spirit, the giver of life, now and ever, world
without end. Amen.

A Prayer to be said over Penitents.

O God, our Saviour, who through thy prophet Nathan
didst grant unto David forgiveness of his sins, and didst accept
the prayer of Manasses, which he offered up, being penitent,
accept now, O Lord, with thy accustomed loving kindness,
this thy servant (here the name is repeated), who repenteth him
for the evil that he has done, and pass over all that he has
committed, Thou who puttest away iniquity and rememberest
transgressions no more. For Thou hast said, O Lord, " He
desireth not the death of a sinner, but rather that he should
turn from his wickedness and live;" and hast told us how sins
ought to be forgiven until seventy times seven. As thy great-

APPENDIX. 289

ness is incomparable, so is thy mercy infinite ; for if Thou be
extreme to mark what is done amiss, who may abide it ? For
Thou art the God of the penitent, and to Thee, the Fathcr?
the Son, and the Holy Ghost, we ascribe glory, now and
always, world without end. Amen.

An Absolutory Prayer for the Dead.

O Lord our God, who of thy unspeakable wisdom didst
make man out of dust, and didst form him into shape and
comeliness, and didst beautify him as a precious and heavenly
possession for the praise and majesty of thy glory and king-
dom, by the leading of a life according to the image and
similitude which he bare, and when he had transgressed the
commandment of thy ordinance, and had not preserved this
image, but departed from it, didst, in order that the evil might
not be everlasting, mercifully command, by thy divine will, as
the God of our Father, that this compound and mixture should
be dissolved, and this wonderful bond should be broken, and
didst command that the Spirit should return thither where it
received its being, to await the general resurrection, but the
body return to the earth as it was, we beseech Thee, eternal
Father, and thy only begotten Son, and the all holy and con-
substantial Spirit, the giver of life, that Thou wilt not suffer
the work of thy hands to be swallowed up in destruction, but
that his body may be dissolved into the dust of which it was
composed, and that his soul may take its place in the assem-
bly of the just. Yea, O Lord our God, let thy boundless
mercy, and thine infinite compassion prevail, and whether
this thy servant fell under the curse of father or mother, or
the sin of his own soul, or provok'ed one of thy priests, and
was bound by him in a chain which cannot be broken, or
was suffering under the most grievous excommunication of
the bishop, and through his sloth or neglect had not obtained
absolution, absolve him through me, sinner and unworthy
servant of thine that I am. Dissolve his body into the dust
of which it was composed, and bid his soul take its place in
Vol. II. U

290 APPENDIX,

the habitations of the saints. Yea, O Lord our God, who
didst give this power to thy divine and holy apostles for the
forgiveness of sins by them, and didst say, Whatsoever things
ye shall bind and loose, shall be bound and loosed, loose
this thy departed servant (here shall his name be mentioned) from
his sins of body and soul, and let him be absolved now and
hereafter, through the intercession of our undefiled Lady, the
Mother of God and ever Virgin Mary, and all thy saints.
Amen.

A Benedictory Prayer of the Bishop in the Service
for Nuptials.
Blessed art Thou, O Lord God, who didst consecrate the
mystic and undefiled rite of matrimony ; who art the Ruler of
our bodily life, the Guardian of our immortality, the good
Dispenser of the things of this world. O Thou our Master,
who didst form man in the beginning, and didst appoint him
as king of creation, and didst say, It is not meet that man
should be alone upon the earth ; let us make him an help
meet for him ; and having taken one of his ribs, didst form
woman, whom, when Adam saw, he said, " This is now bone of
my bone, and flesh of my flesh, she shall be called Woman,
because she was taken ^"out of man ; for this cause shall a
man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his
wife, and they two shall be one flesh ; and whom God hath
joined together, let not man put asunder;" O Thou our Lord
and Master, and our God, send thy heavenly grace on these
thy servants (here mentioning the names of the couple); and
grant to this damsel to be subject to her husband in all
things, and to this thy servant that he may be as the head of
the woman, that they may live according to thy will. Bless
them, O Lord our God, as Thou didst bless Abraham and
Sarah. Bless them, O Lord our God, as Thou didst bless Isaac
and Rebecca. Bless them, O Lord our God, as Thou didst
bless Jacob and all the Patriarchs. Bless them, O Lord our
God, as Thou didst bless Joseph and Asenath. Bless them, O

APPENDIX. 291

Lord our God, as Thou didst bless Moses and Zipporah. Bless
them, O Lord our God, as Thou didst bless Zaehariah and
Elizabeth. Preserve them, O Lord our God, as Thou didst
preserve Noah in the ark. Preserve them, O Lord our God,
as Thou didst preserve Jonah in the belly of the whale. Pre-
serve them, O Lord our God, as Thou didst preserve the three
Holy Children from the fire, sending upon them the dew of
heaven : and may there come upon them that joy which St.
Helen had when she found the precious cross. Remember
them, O Lord our God, as Thou didst remember Enoch,
Shem, Elias. Remember them, O Lord our God, as Thou
didst remember thy forty holy Martyrs, sending down their
crowns from heaven. Remember also, O Lord, their parents
who reared them, for the prayers of parents establish the
foundations of the house. Remember, O Lord our God, thy
servants the para-nymphs assembled at this rejoicing. Remem-
ber, O Lord our God, this thy servant and thy handmaid, and
bless them ; grant them the fruit of the womb, the grace of
children, and agreement in spirit and in body ; exalt them as
the cedar of Libanus, and as the choice-clustering vine; grant
them to be as the fruitful vine, that, having all-sufficiency,
they may abound unto every work that is good and well-
pleasing to Thee, and may see their children's children as
the young olive-branches round about their table, and being
acceptable before Thee, may shine as lights in the heaven :
through Thee, our Lord, with whom be glory, and power, and
honour, and worship, together with thy eternal Father, and
thy life-giving Spirit, now, henceforth, and for ever. Amen.

A Prayer said by the Bishop over one employed to
travel officially.

O God our God, who art the true and living way, who
didst accompany thy servant Joseph on his journey, accom-
pany, O Lord, this thy servant (mentioning his name) ; protect
him from robbers and pirates, and every plot of the murderous
enemy of man. Forgive him every transgression, voluntary

U2

292 APPENDIX.

and involuntary, whatsoever he has committed in deed, in
word, or in intention, whether in knowledge or in ignorance.
Preserve his life unassaulted, and his soul pure from all defile-
ment. Prosper his movements, and conduct his plans; keep
him in health and of a sound mind in all to which his mind
shall be given. Even so we pray Thee, O almighty King and
long-suffering Lord, hear me, unworthy as I am, for thy good-
ness; and overlooking all the offences of thy servant (here
mentioning his name), enrich him with thy grace, and make him
full of all thy earthly and heavenly gifts, and an inheritor of
thy divine glory and of thine unspeakable peace ; for thine is
the kingdom, the power, and the glory, O Father, Son, and
Holy Ghost, now, henceforth, and for ever. Amen.

APPENDIX, 293

IL

Narrative of Events which happened to Dr.

Wolff at Bokhara, and on his Journey

thence to Teheraun ;

By ABDUL WAHAB, Mirza, Painter, Watchmaker,
and Tailor.

In company with the exalted Abbas Kouli Khan, as will now
be detailed, the Rev. Joseph Wolff arrived in Bokhara.
Before the Ameer of Bokhara admitted Joseph Wolff to his
presence, he assembled several of his Grandees to consult with
him, saying, " What answer shall I give to the English envoy
respecting putting to death two English gentlemen, Stoddart
and Conolly?" They answered, "Your Majesty knows best."
His Majesty said, " Let us say that they committed high
treason, and therefore we have seized them and put them to
death." The Grandees said to the Ameer, " This gentleman
who is now come, seize him and put him to death. Who is
he ? He may be coming with an army towards Bokhara, and
he may possibly take Bokhara." His Majesty answered, "Let
us wait to see what he will do when he arrives in Bokhara."

A Chamberlain from the King then went to Joseph Wolff,
saying, " Tell us what is your object, that I may inform His
Majesty." Joseph Wolff answered, " I have letters from the
Shah and Sultan. Why do you maltreat a stranger ? And
why have you put to death two English gentlemen ? Answer
me what was their crime ? By what religion or creed is this
right, killing your guests ?" The King of Bokhara had no
answer to snve. The Chamberlain then left.

2&4 APPENDIX.

The King sent Joseph Wolff to the Nayeb, Abdul Samut
Khan, to receive answers from him about the execution.
Joseph Wolff, on a Monday, at nine o'clock, went with Dil
Assa Khan, whom the Assaff-ood-Dowla had sent from Meshed
with him, in company with a Makhram, Mullah Kasem, to
Abdul Samut Khan. They seated themselves on the balcony
of the house of the Nayeb, with Abdul Samut Khan. A con-
versation then took place on the subject of Stoddart and
Conolly, opened by Dr. Wolff. Abdul Samut Khan attributed
to Stoddart and Conolly crimes that they had not committed
(of which Heaven is witness). Dr. Wolff perceived that he
should be implicated in a troublesome matter if he said,
" You have made false imputations with respect to those
gentlemen," and probably be put to death himself. He said
nothing.

Afterward Abdul Samut Khan said to Joseph Wolff, that
His Majesty had written a letter to the Dowlat, asking infor-
mation as to the capacity in which they had come to Bokhara.
From the time of their arrival in Bokhara other kings had
become rebellious. (This account was false, and these
gentlemen calumniated ; for from the most ancient times,
from the reign of Shah Hydur, the father of the present
King, Khokand and Khiva had been yearly at war with
Bokhara).

Joseph Wolff replied, " The letter which the Dowlat
received through India was answered a year ago. Why do
you utter falsehoods ?" (But this letter had not reached the
King, though it had certainly been received by the Nayeb.
The Nayeb only owned to this two days before his departure
for Khokand. He had received it by Nasir Hirullah, a
Cabulee,)

We come now to later circumstances. From the arrival of
Joseph Wolff until Abbas Kouli Khan came, Joseph Wolff
was greatly distressed in mind, as shall be explained.

One day they brought Joseph Wolff to Abdul Samut
Khan's house, when the following circumstances occurred,

APPENDIX. 295

in company with Mullah Kasem, the Chamberlain, and Dil
Assa Khan. After the crimes which they imputed to Stoddart
and Conolly had been named, which Joseph Wolff refused to
answer, the Chamberlain went to the King, and reported his
silence, and represented that Joseph Wolff, who had heard the
offence of the officers in the Nayeb's house, and the statement
against Stoddart and Conolly, was convinced of their guilt.
The Ameer was greatly delighted to learn that Joseph Wolff
assented to their reasonable sentence. After the departure
of the Makhram, the Nayeb said, " The gentlemen were
innocent ; the King put them to death unjustly. I have been
two years in his service without pay myself, and he has dis-
missed me. If the English Government would send a man to
Shahr-Sabz, Khokand, Organtsh, Balkh, to make an alliance
with them, and give me twenty thousand tillahs, I myself
would kill the Ameer in retaliation for the death of the
English gentlemen."

Joseph Wolff. "The illustrious Dowlat does not sanction
the murder of Sovereigns. We do not seek a name of
infamy."

(From the time that Joseph Wolff came to the Nayeb's
house to the period when he went with Abbas Kouli Khan to
Meshed, he was on each separate occasion guarded night and
day, so that no one could have access to him, nor could he
hold speech with any unperceived.)

The Nayeb produced on one occasion a paper, signed by
Stoddart and Conolly, that the Nayeb had lent them three
thousand tillahs, which they were in debt. " I will send you,"
said he to Joseph Wolff, "six thousand tillahs on behalf of
Abdullah Khan (his son). Have a care that hereafter those
three thousand tillahs, with the six thousand tillahs which I
will send you, be paid. You will give a written undertaking,
that the interest shall be paid to my son." Joseph Wolff
agreed to this. He took three thousand tillahs. The other
three thousand were disbursed for the journey.

Every day the Nayeb used to say, " His Majesty will give

296 APPENDIX.

you leave to depart to-morrow." (The fact was not known
among the people, that at this time the Ameer had determined
to kill Joseph Wolff; but this was the fact.) Had Abbas
Kouli Khan not secured the safe conduct of Joseph Wolff, he
would have been killed as Messrs. Stoddart and Conolly were.
The Ameer, when he learnt the arrival of the Eljee, Abbas
Kouli Khan, from the Shah, the shadow of God, (may God
prolong his empire and government,) with several requests,
determined to see him, and to learn what they were. He
asked him by the Shekhawl, for what purpose he came.
Abbas Kouli Khan : " I, the slave, come from the King of
Persia with four requests. I have a letter in which they are
contained. Let the King of Bokhara receive it." After the
arrival of the Khan they invited him to an audience. Abbas
Kouli Khan brought a royal letter, with greetings on the
part of the Shah, to the Ameer of Bokhara. Having taken
the letter, he went to the Ameer. After compliments,
he preferred the following requests to the Ameer of Bo-
khara : 1st. The release of Joseph Wolff. 2nd. The libe-
ration of slaves. 3rd. Liberation of Muhammed Taki the
Astrologer's wife, who was in slavery with the Ameer. 4th.
Respecting Mowr.

The King of Bokhara answered, " With respect to the
departure of the Reverend Joseph Wolff, I have no diffi-
culty. I am very glad that you are come. This is my will
in common with that of the King of Persia. We are going to
send an Eljee, in company with Joseph Wolff, to England, to
please you. Several people from Persia I shall give you, and
we shall send them in your company to Persia. Never has an
instance been known from the most ancient time, that any
King ever has taken slaves from Turkistaun into Persia. As
thou art the devoted slave of Iraun and a perfect man, we give
you Joseph Wolff for your safe conduct. Take him with you
and also those slaves* that I have permitted."

The Ameer meant the slaves that had purchased their freedom. J. W.

APPENDIX. 297

Then Joseph Wolff and Abbas Kouli Khan agreed to go
together to Meshed. Then there came the news of the march
to Khokand. Praise be to God, the Ameer went there and was
defeated, and returned ; Abbas Kouli Khan was allowed to
depart with Joseph Wolff, having taken with them the slaves
sent out from Meshed. Then there came another letter from
the Shah, demanding the release of Joseph Wolff.

Joseph Wolff one day said to the Nayeb, in the presence
of Mullah Kasem and Dil Assa Khan, " The Dowlat has sent by
India a letter to the King of Bokhara, and in the country of
Cabul five hundred rupees were paid to an Affghaun to convey
the letter to Bokhara, and that Affghaun lives at Balkh." Several
days after the arrival of Joseph Wolff, when the news of this
letter went abroad, Nasir Hirullah, a Cabulee, came to the
Nayeb, saying, "This Affghaun, who brought from Cabul the
answer to the letter of the King of Bokhara, is in Bokhara in
my house, and gave me no account of the letter from fear.
Shall I take the letter and give it to the King. It is respect-
ing the release of Stoddart and Conolly. Having learnt that
a gentleman has come from Iraun to Bokhara, this man
came from Balkh to Bokhara." The Nayeb informed the
King that the letter had come from England to Cabul, and
from Cabul to Bokhara ; and that from fear it had not been
delivered to His Majesty, and that the letter was at Balkh.
" Let them bring it from Balkh," said the King. The Cabulee
and other persons were sent to fetch it. Some time after
this event, the expedition to Khokand took place. The
Ameer sent a man from Samarcand for the Nayeb, that he
should come with soldiers and four cannon, in order that he
might march against Khokand. One day before the Nayeb
set out from Samarcand, the letter came from Balkh. The
letter was sealed, but broken in the middle. The Nayeb gave
the letter to one of his men to show it to Joseph Wolff, and
said he was going with the letter to give it to the King at
Samarcand. Having shown the letter to Joseph Wolff, he

298 APPENDIX.

took it away and brought it to the King. After the Nayeb
came back from the march to Khokand, he gave the letter to
me, Mirza Abdul Wahab, being at that time in the house of
the Nayeb, and said, " Carry the letter to Joseph Wolff to
read it." Again, His Majesty, after reading it, said, " It is
no answer to my letter to the British Government. It is just
that I kill this Frankee also." If Abbas Kouli Khan had not
been at Bokhara, Joseph Wolff would have been killed, like the
other English gentlemen, but he led him away. I, who .am
Abdul Wahab, showed this letter to Abbas Kouli Khan, and
told him what the Nayeb said. Abbas Kouli Khan said to me,
"Give the letter to Joseph Wolff, but do not tell him what the
Nayeb said. If you tell Joseph Wolff what the Ameer has said,
it will kill him. I am from Iraun ; there will I carry him. If he
shall die, what shall I say to the Shah ? I gave the letter to
Joseph Wolff, but said not a word. The Nayeb himself, in his
own house, said to Joseph Wolff) that the King had said as above.

But with respect to the money which the Nayeb gave to
Joseph Wolff one day, the Nayeb gave me two thousand
tillahs, saying, " Take them to the house of Joseph Wolff, and
give them to him, and take a receipt for me, sealed up." I
carried with me the two thousand tillahs. Joseph Wolff gave
them into the hands of Abdullah, andMehdee, a servant of the
Nayeb, lent to Joseph Wolff for the purpose of attending
him, saying, "Count them, and see that the silver is right."
Having given Joseph Wolff the money, I came to the house of
Abbas Kouli Khan, and sat down for about an hour, when
Joseph Wolff brought the written receipt to me, sealed in due
form, acknowledging that the two thousand tillahs were cor-
rect. I, the humble servant, took the receipt, and gave it to
the Nayeb. Two days had elapsed from the giving of the
two thousand tillahs, when I gave him one thousand more, in
the presence of Ameer Sarog the Turkomaun, who accom-
panied Joseph Wolff from Meshed.

Abbas Kouli Khan, Dil Assa Khan, Joseph Wolff, Ameer Sarog,

APPENDIX. 299

and Kaher Kouli, having departed from Bokhara, set out for
Meshed. Night and day the sole thought of Ameer Sarog, of
Abdullah, of Kaher Kouli, of the men of Dil Assa Khan, was, if
possible, to kill Joseph Wolff, and take away his money.
Should they not be able to kill him, they determined to have
his money. Abbas Kouli Khan understood their design, and
gave Joseph Wolff one Ibrahim, a servant of his own ; and in
the night he kept guard over him, and bound his bridle to
mine. During each station our tents were pitched side by
side, till the time of loading. The money, the three thou-
sand tillahs, wras kept in the trunk of Abbas Kouli Khan.
Further occurrences shall be related. Saturday evening,
12th Rajab.

One hour of the day had elapsed, when the high in
rank, Abbas Kouli Khan, and Joseph Wolff, with Dil Assa
Khan, Abdullah, Ameer Sarog, Kaher Kouli, with the rest of
the attendants, arrived at Jesman-Doo, and halted for a time
in a garden on the border of a tank. Dil Assa Khan, with his
own servants, took up his abode outside the garden. When
the first of the sun came, we mounted our horses and set out
for Shahr Islam. They halted at Shahr Islam in a mosque.

Joseph Wolff came to Abbas Kouli Khan, exclaiming,
"For God's sake come here, Ameer Sarog, Kaher Kouli,
Abdullah, Dil Assa Khan, Mortesa, from whom I hired camels
for carrying the cash, pick quarrels with your servant. They
will at last kill me ; I shall not arrive in Teheraun. Having
broken my trunk they want to carry off the bag of money."
Abbas Kouli Khan said to me, Mirza Abdul Wahab, " Run,
do not leave the money in the hands of the Englishman, and
seal it with wax and a seal." To another servant, whose
name was Fezullah, it was given in charge to look after the
money, so that no one might steal it.

We quitted Shahr Islam. Abbas Kouli Khan, with Joseph
Wolff, took up his quarters inside a house, Dil Assa Khan
and others outside. Provision was sent to Joseph Wolff from
Abbas Kouli Khan. We arrived at Karakol, and remained

300 APPENDIX.

in the house of Shakerbeg, which is the House of the King ;
Dil Assa Khan and others outside, on the bank of the river.
Day and night Abbas Kouli Khan's servants were constantly
annoyed by Abdullah, Ameer Sarog, and Kaher Kouli.

From Karakol we went to Alat. In Alat we had one
common abode with Abbas Kouli Khan. Here Joseph Wolff
gave bread and a sheep to the slaves. Abbas Kouli Khan
gave at every station an allowance to the slaves, until the day
when we arrived in Meshed.

Thence we departed, and to the village of Say en. There,
in the house of the Lord of the Beard, we took up our quar-
ters. Ameer Sarog said to Joseph Wolff's servant, " If the
Turkomauns from Khiva come and assault us, I shall kill
Joseph Wolff, and take away his money ; I will not leave it for
the Organtshee to take it. The Organtshee may take Abbas
Kouli Khan along with the slaves." Abdullah came and told
this to Joseph Wolff; Joseph Wolff said to Abbas Kouli
Khan, " If you will take care of the money, well ; if not I will
pour it forth in the Desert ; Ameer Sarog wishes to kill me
for the money." Abbas Kouli Khan replied, ''Ameer Sarog
dare not do it ; do not be afraid." Joseph Wolff was not
satisfied with this. Abbas Kouli Khan then said to me,
" Abdul Wahab, go into the room of Joseph Wolff, put the
money in a bag, and seal the mouth of it with wax ;" and he
gave it into the hands of Ali Akbar, the baggage carrier. I
went according to the order of Abbas Kouli Khan ; I took the
money of Joseph Wolff, put it in a bag, and sealed it with
wax. I kept it till at Myandasht, where I gave it one night
into the hands of Joseph Wolff. After he (Ali Akbar) had
taken the money, Abdullah repented that he had told Joseph
Wolff this circumstance, which induced him to give the
money to the baggage guard.

From Sayen, three o'clock, remaining from sunrise, we
set out on horseback, and came to Kirya Karab, and lodged
in the garden ; a guard was given us. We remained about
the prisoners ' three days, until they had passed the Jehoon

APPENDIX. 301

(Oxus), and then proceeded to Jehaar-Joo, where we pitched
our tent outside the tower, which was destroyed by the people
of Organtsh. Abbas Kouli Khan inquired of the inhabitants
of Jehaar-Joo respecting the way to Rafitak ; their reply was
that the way to Merve through Rafitak was near, but that
the Organtshee had destroyed the wells. Abbas Kouli Khan
spoke to Ahmed Beyk, the governor, to send some men by
way of Rafitak to Merve, to dig wells, or to repair those
which might have been partly destroyed.

After having remained four days in Jehaar-Joo to recruit
a little, Abbas Kouli Khan and Dr. Wolff, with the Bokha-
rese ambassadors, set off within three hours of sunset for
Rafitak. After halting one hour at noon, we reached Rafitak.
We stayed there one night, and on the next day, within three
hour's of sunset, we took the way to Auje Aajee. We had
mounted our horses, when suddenly the Bokharese uttered an
exclamation, that the Organtshee were coining. Abbas Kouli
Khan despatched some men to ascertain whence these troops
came. They returned to the Khan, and informed him that
they were the troops of Ahmed Beyk, the Governor of Jehaar-
Joo. One of the horsemen presented himself before Kouli
Beyk, the commander of the horse, saying that he had a
written order from His Majesty the Ameer to this effect.
They were to demand one hundred and fifty pieces of gold,
as a tribute for the slaves whom Abbas Kouli Khan had taken
along with him from Bokhara. Kouli Beyk, having received
the order of the King, came with it to Abbas Kouli Khan,
telling him how the King demanded this sum as a tribute for
passing the river, and that it was to be paid to Ahmed Beyk's
men. To this Abbas Kouli Khan made answer, u What sort
of a principle is this that you follow ? If you granted me
the slaves, why do you require tribute for them ? And if you
are for exacting tribute, why pass by the kindness we have
done, for we furnished slaves whom you might take with you
to Persia? Slaves certainly have no property of their own.
The expenses of the inns, including hire, I defray out of my

302 APPENDIX.

own purse. I myself have no property that I should be able
to pay you tribute for the slaves, and they have nothing to
pay for themselves." They replied, " It is not so ; one hun-
dred and fifty pieces of gold must be had." Abbas Kouli
Khan said hastily, " I will write a letter to the King of Bo-
khara, asking him what kind of a plan this is that he follows.
If he desires the friendship of the King of Persia, why should
he send this letter; or if he does not wish to cultivate his
alliance, why should he have given the slaves leave to depart ?"
Abbas Kouli Khan, together with Sabhan Kouli Beyk, the
chief steward at Court, wrote to the King about the money
demanded, and sent an express to Bokhara.

The Bokharese horsemen going on with Abbas Kouli
Khan, we went forward to the station of Auje Aaje. In the
course of the way, Ameer Sarog, Abdullah, Mortesa, and
Kaher Kouli, were talking together. They said, " If the
Organtshee come up, let us kill Joseph Wolff, and carry off
his property." They thought he had two thousand pieces of
gold deposited in the chest. They had not learned that there
was any money in the possession of Ali Akbar, or in the part
where the chest of Abbas Kouli Khan was kept. From the
first station to the last, Ali Akbar, who had charge of it, kept
riding along by the side of it, in order that, if it could be
prevented, no one might come against it.

Night and day, Abdullah, Ameer Sarog, Mortesa, and
Kaher Kouli, were concerting plans about Dr. Wolff; I heard
them talking together and concerting their plan. They said,
" Let us make a quarrel between Abbas Kouli Khan and the
Turkomauns. They will kill Abbas Kouli Khan, and we will
kill Joseph Wolff, and carry off his property till we arrive at
the station of Auje Aaje." The men of Abbas Kouli Khan
and the Turkomauns began quarrelling at a well of water
about the return to Bokhara. It happened that they were
just returned from Bokhara. They bade us take care of the
villany of Kaher Kouli, Ameer Sarog, Abdullah, and Mortesa.
But it so happened that Abbas Kouli Khan, by one means or

APPENDIX. 303

another, such as giving them presents, kept the Turkomauns
quiet till we arrived at the station of Merve Kahnah.

Sometimes Ameer Sarog came up to Dr. Wolff, saying,
" Come out of the way of the desert, I will conduct you to
Khiva, and from Khiva I will bring you by way of Mazan-
deraun to Teheraun." Dr. Wolff was for agreeing to it.
Abbas Kouli Khan, when informed of what he had said, told
Dr. Wolff, " They want to get you into the desert, and kill
you, and carry off your property; and I who have brought
you safe from Bokhara, shall not be able to entrust you to
the care of the English Envoy, Colonel Sheil." Dr. Wolff
then ceased to listen to him.

We set out from Auje Aaje, and having halted one hour at
noon, we went on to old Merve. Here Abbas Kouli Khan
and Dr. Joseph Wolff lodged in the house of the Khaleefa
Abdarrahman. The Bokharese ambassadors, when they
came, lodged in the castle.

Ameer Sarog said privately to the Turkomauns, " The
Englishman has ten thousand pieces of gold: if you frighten
him, and tell him you must have tribute for the slaves, he
will give it you through fear. Abbas Kouli Khan also has a
precious knife and sword. Let us take his property and kill
him and sell his men to the Organtshee. We saw that the
thousand Turkomauns and Abdullah conspired to execute it
together with Mortesa. But praise be to God, He did not
allow them to accomplish their design. Kaher Kouli began
complaining to Dr. Wolff, and saying, " You did not give me
any money, when you were at Bokhara; you must give me
some here. If you don't, I will seize your property.'*

Dr. Wolff went to the tent of Abbas Kouli Khan to tell
him. He replied, "As long as T am alive, no one shall speak
in this way. Don't distress yourself — be quiet." He said to
me (Abdul Wahab), "If Kaher Kouli comes, let me know;
I will come and deal with him." When Kaher Kouli came, I
brought him to Abbas Kouli Khan. The latter said to him,
u I have heard that you have been more than once to Dr.

304 APPENDIX.

Joseph Wolff, demanding money: Heaven knows, if you do it
again, I will take care that you suffer for it." Kaher Kouli,
whatever he might before have received from Dr. Wolff,
never demanded money from him again. He was kept in awe
by Abbas Kouli Khan.

Ameer Sarog too never repeated his demand. However,
he secretly excited a disaffection among the Turkomauns.
One of them formed a plot. He took hold of the bridle of
the horse of Abbas Kouli Khan and said, "We have no in-
junction from the King himself, but we have a strict charge
from the minister, telling us that he does not release our pri-
soners, and as such we are to keep a strict watch over you.
Whenever we have a command to that effect, we will let you
go." Abbas Kouli Khan, who did not comprehend the drift
of all this, looked at the servant of the King and said to him,
" What is this you have in your minds? There is a perfectly
good understanding between the King of Iraun and the King
of Turaun. I will Avrite a letter to the royal court, begging
that a command may be given to the minister to send a cer-
tain number of soldiers, and the King of Bokhara, on his part,
will send some, and together they will soon stop you."

Just at this time, a swift horseman whom they had sent
from Eafitak to Bokhara, on matters connected with the tri-
bute for passing the river and the tribute at Merve, arrived.
A favourable letter was received from the King of Bokhara,
addressed to Arak Chojah, the governor of Merve, and the
chief of the Safeedan, a Turkomaun tribe, notifying to them
that he had granted the slaves to Abbas Kouli Khan. We
therefore paid no tribute. He further commanded them to
pay all respect and attention to Abbas Kouli Khan, till he
should have passed through his territory. The result of this
courtesy of the King of Bokhara was, that the Turkomauns
exhibited all due regard to him. They even sought his pro-
tection, beseeching him to receive acknowledgments from
them, and expressing their fear, that if he did not, the minister
would set their slaves at liberty. Abbas Kouli Khan also

APPENDIX. 305

gave the Khaleefa one shawl gown, and five pounds of tea; to
one of his sons he gave a silk gown ; and to another an excel-
lent javelin.

He obtained information that the Tvirkomauns were
making a conspiracy to fall upon himself by the way, to
take him, and carry off the slaves to Khiva, to kill Joseph
Wolff, and to seize his property. Abbas Kouli Khan gave
directions to his servants, in case they should attempt to put
their design into execution. The Khaleefa, being aware of
their intention, took ten horsemen of the tribe of Salur, and
twenty horsemen of the tribe of Saruk, and they came pro-
vided with spears to Abbas Kouli Khan, at the bank of the
river Tekka, and partook of a meal with him at the bank of
the river. On the next day the Khaleefa told the Turko-
mauns that he would accompany them with one of his sons,
Rachman Birdee, and would go with Abbas Kouli Khan by
the river Sarakhs. The Khaleefa said, " You go with my son,
Rahman Werde, and Abbas Kouli Khan, to Sarakhs; from
Sarakhs he must return/' At Sarakhs we were guests of
Khan Saat. Abbas Kouli Khan and Joseph Wolff gave pre-
sents to Khan Saat, and then we went on to Olugh Baba
There Abbas Kouli Beyk demanded a hundred and fifty tillahs
for the slaves. Abbas Kouli Khan replied, " I have before
now travelled from the State of Iraun to that of Turaun. I
have had ten thousand pieces of gold to pay expenses. You,
who are so great an ambassador, have not one hundred and
fifty pieces of gold ; and for this sum you are getting a bad
name for your King." Sabhan Kouli Beyk replied, " I know
nothing about the honour of the King, or of any one else; I
must have one hundred and fifty pieces of gold." Abbas
Kouli Khan said, " I have no ready money at my disposal,
and the slaves have none of their own. From Bokhara to
Meshed I am paying their expenses out of my own purse. Do
not act in this way ; you are going to Iraun yourself, and
there you will have a bad name, and will deprive the King of
Bokhara of all honour there." Sabhan Kouli Beyk replied,

Vol. II. X

306 APPENDIX.

" Give me one hundred and fifty pieces of gold for passage-
money, and let the King of Bokhara be without honour ; that
is no concern of mine. If you give me this sum I shall
go on to Iraun ; and if you don't, I shall return to Bok-
hara with the slaves." Abbas Kouli said, "Very well! if
you mean to take the slaves, take them." Sabhan Kouli
Beyk directed the Iblat, a Tiirkomaun tribe, living on the
bank of the Sarakhs, to take the slaves, and carry them
off? — to seize all the property of Abbas Kouli Khan, — to
kill the Englishman, and to take his money. Once we saw
about six thousand Turkomauns surrounding the tent of
Abbas Kouli Khan and Joseph Wolff. They were all about
the chests of Abbas Kouli Khan. I, Abdul Wahab, was
aware of the necessity of defending them, because the pro-
perty of Joseph Wolff was there ; and I knew that if we
neglected this, the Turkomauns would make a spoil of them.
Ali Akbar was always kept stationed by the chests. Once
the Turkomauns made an attack upon them. Ali Akbar
came to me and said, " Make haste, and come to the chests."
I came, and saw about fifty Turkomauns around them, with
the design of plundering them. They had completely sur-
rounded them, and were in every direction about Joseph
Wolff. He went to Abbas Kouli Khan, and said to him,
" The tribute for the slaves had better be paid out of the
money that is deposited in the chests." He replied, " If this
is done, the Turkomauns will be sure to repeat their conduct,
and no one will be able to bear them."

Abbas Kouli Khan sent for Chajem Shakur, a person of
consideration among the Turkomauns. When he came,
Abbas Kouli Khan said to him, " How is it that there is all
this trouble with the Turkomauns ? If you seek tribute
from the slaves, they have no property. From Bokhara to
Meshed, I, out of mere kindness, pay their expenses. Do
leave off acting in this monstrous way, and do not annoy
the Englishman by going continually to his tent. Heaven
knows, if you do the slightest injury to any of the people of

APPENDIX. 307

the caravan, the Government shall hear of it, and they will
settle the matter with you." Chajem Shakur replied, " If
either you or the Englishman suffer the least injury, even
as much as a grain of mustard-seed, from the Turkomauns,
I, Chajem Shakur, with my whole tribe, shall suffer by the
Assaff-ood-Dowla." Abbas Kouli Khan made answer, " If
you speak truly, go and tell the Turkomauns to disperse."
Chajem Shakur made no reply, but obeyed Abbas Kouli
Khan, went to the Turkomauns and told them to go their
own way.

From the station at Alak, Abbas Kouli Khan, Joseph
Wolff, and Sabhan Kouli Beyk, the Master of the Kitchen,
together with Abul Kasem and myself, went towards Shorak.
At Alak, Abbas Kouli Khan gave one hundred tillahs present
and delivered it into the hands of Sabhan Kouli Beyk. The
latter having received it, went off, and we made for the
station of Shorak.

The English Government are aware that the aim of
those employed in the Bokhara service is to preserve the
honour of their King, and that the aim of Abbas Kouli
Khan was the same with regard to the King of Iraun. He
brought Bihzar Mahr, who had come from Bokhara to keep
an especial eye towards the honour of the King of Iraun,
to Joseph Wolff, accompanied by about a thousand, great
and small, whom he had set at liberty, and the expense
being defrayed, he took them to Meshed.

We next went to Mazduran. In the course of the jour-
ney, Mullah Mehdee Islaam Iadeed came to Joseph Wolff. At
Mazduran we happened to pitch our tents close by that of Dr.
Wolff, at the bank of the river. Joseph Wolff's great desire
seemed to be to reach Meshed. From Mazduran we went
to Chehar Gumbad. There, in the midst of the desert,
Abbas Kouli Khan and Joseph Wolff pitched their tents at
the bank of the river. Meer Abdul Kasem had said to
Joseph Wolff at Mazduran, " You must give me pre-
sents previous to your entering Meshed ; for I must enter

X2

308 APPENDIX.

Meshed in the midst of the people with new trappings."
Joseph Wolff replied, " The Envoy at Teheraun will give you
a present." At Chehar Gumbad, Meer Abul Kasem sent
his men forward to attend Joseph Wolff, in order that we
might arrive on the next day at Meshed. He again said,
" I have no good trappings. You must assuredly give me a
robe of honour; for to-morrow we shall be entering Meshed."
Joseph Wolff replied, " I have nothing but a single garment,
a robe of honour, which His Majesty the King of Bokhara
gave me as a present, and one Cashmeer shawl which I got
for my wife. I must take the present of the Bashal with
me to London. Meer Abul Kasem more than once said to
Joseph Wolff in an outrageous way, " Let them go and fetch
me the shawl that the Bashal gave you as a present." Dr.
Wolff said that he had no choice ; he gave the shawl to Meer
Abul Kasem. But the latter was not satisfied with the
shawl. He demanded money for it. Dr. Wolff was unable to
endure this. He sent some men, and they took away the
shawl again from Meer Abul Kasem, who remained degraded
among the people.

Abbas Kouli Khan, Joseph Wolff, and the ambassadors,
were treated with great respect and honour at Meshed.
Joseph Wolff stayed in the house of the Jew, Mullah Mehdee,
and the Bokharese ambassadors together in one house. At
the arrival in Meshed, through the lapse of time, Joseph
Wolff became very indisposed. They bled him plentifully.
Each day Abbas Kouli Khan sent to inquire after his health,
and very frequently went himself to see him. Hussein, the son
of the minister of state, continually sent the Ferash Baashee
(director of police) to attend upon Joseph Wolff. The latter
sometimes sent Mullah Mehdee Islaam Iadeed to wait upon Ab-
bas Kouli Khan. Joseph Wolff declared that the kindness he
had received was unparalleled, and begged that Abbas Kouli
Khan would accept the two thousand pieces of gold deposited
in the chests, only reserving enough for necessary expenses.
To this Abbas Kouli Khan replied, "All the kindness I have

APPENDIX. 309

shown was not for pecuniary reward, but to promote a good
feeling between the governments of Iraun and England, and
the money remains precisely as it has been entrusted to
Ali Akbar who has charge of the chests. You might, with
reason, have some fear on this point, when you were any-
where near Bokhara; but, thank heaven, there is no cause
for such fear at Meshed/' Sometimes Mullah Mehdee was
for agreeing to what Abbas Kouli Khan said. Sometimes he
inquired of me, Abdul Wahab, "How is it that Abbas Kouli
Khan borrows money of the merchants, and does not use part
of the money entrusted to him?" I gave answer, "Abbas
Kouli Khan shows kindness for the sake of a good feeling
between the two States, not for the sake of reward. And be
assured of this much, that he has not touched, and will not
touch, a deposit.,,

Joseph Wolff gave Ameer Abul Kasem, who was to go to
England as ambassador, a Cashmeer shawl as a present.
Hussein Khan, the minister of the Khakan, sent a splendid
horse, as a present, for the service of Joseph Wolff. The
minister of state sent a list of articles to Hussein Khan, which
were to be sent in his name to Joseph Wolff. The articles
were, a shawl from the Assaff-ood-Dowla, a horse, and sweet-
meats.

The wish of all was to get away from Meshed. Abbas Kouli
Khan saw that Joseph Wolff was unable to ride on horseback.
He went to the apartments of Hussein Khan, and said to him,
"Joseph Wolff is unable to ride; a takht-rawan (litter) should
be prepared for him, that he may proceed by it." Hussein
gave directions, through his Ferash Baashee, and they got
one ready in five days. Joseph Wolff made use of this till he
reached Teheraun. Abbas Kouli Khan, Mullah Mehdee, and
all the people of the khafeelah (caravan) accompanied him
till we reached Askariyah, distant one parasang from Meshed.
Here Hussein Khan sent a Farash, i. e., honorary guard, to
Joseph Wolff.

From the station at Askariyah, we went on, satisfactorily,

310 APPENDIX.

five parasangs to Shareef Abaci, and took our place on the
side of a river. From Shareef A bad we advanced eight
parasangs, and pitched our tent under the shade of some
trees in the city Kadam-Gah. From this place we went on
five parasangs quite comfortably, when we reached Kisha-
poor, and lodged at the caravanseray. The commander of
the forces went to see Joseph Wolff, and took several pre-
sents along with him. We remained one day in Nishapoor,
and on the next day we set off, and after travelling twelve
parasangs, we reached Zagphranee, and took up our station
at the side of a river.

From Saineen, which is under subjection to the Assaff-
ood-Dowla, to the station in the midst of the desert lying
towards Teheraun, Ali Akbar, who had charge of the chests,
and myself, had no rest, day or night, on account of the two
thousand pieces of gold, which had been entrusted to Abbas
Kouli Khan ; till the time when, at the station of Miyanclasht,
I delivered them into the hands of Joseph Wolff, in the
presence of Mullah Mehdee.

From Zagphranee, we proceeded six parasangs to the
city of Sabzawar, and remained outside the town. At every
resting-place, from Bokhara to Geshlak, which is towards
Teheraun, morning or evening, Abbas Kouli Khan took care
to conduct Dr. Wolff from the station. This was the case
as far as Geshlak, when he became safe on the way to
Teheraun. From Sabzawar, Ave travelled seven parasangs
to Sudchar. Joseph Wolff, accompanied by Mullah Mehdee,
Ameer Pak, and the servants, stayed within the village;
Abbas Kouli Khan and the Bokharese ambassadors outside.
From the village of Sudchar we proceeded five parasangs to
Mazynan, and stayed by the side of a river. Here Abbas
Kouli Khan was treated with great honour. Joseph Wolff
went from Mazynan, seven parasangs, to Abbas Abaci, and
stayed at the castle. Abbas Kouli Khan and the Bokharese
ambassadors lodged at the caravanseray of Shah Abbas.

From Abbas Abaci, six parasangs brought us to Miyan-

APPENDIX. 311

clasht. Dr. Wolff stayed at the castle. He several times
wished Abbas Kouli Khan to accept of the two thousand
pieces of gold which were contained in the chests, but he
would not consent. Abbas Kouli Khan directed me to take
the money to Mullah Mehdee, to be taken care of for Joseph
Wolff; to show him the seal and deliver it up to him. After-
wards a note reached me, telling me to take the money and
bring it back. I took it, and delivered it, as I was directed.
A number of persons then came ; I again took possession of
it, to keep it for Abbas Kouli Khan.

From Miyandasht we went five parasangs to Miyamee.
Here Abbas Kouli Khan and all the ambassadors lodged in the
caravanseray. From Miyamee we advanced nine parasangs to
the city of Shahrud, and stayed outside it. Joseph Wolff was
at the castle. Abbas Kouli Khan came to him to inquire
after his health. Next, Joseph Wolffj Abbas Kouli Khan,
and the Bokharese ambassadors, went five parasangs to the
village of Deh Mulla, and halted by the side of a river. Here
Ameer Abul Kasem sent his son at night on a message to
Joseph Wolff, to obtain money from him if he could. Dr.
Wolff told him to go and bring a note from Ameer Abul
Kasem, and then he would give him money. He said, " You
have taken fifty pieces of gold and a shawl, and you are not
satisfied." The son of Ameer Abul Kasem confessed in my
presence that they had obtained one horse, one shawl, as well
as money at different times from Joseph Wolff. Before the
Ameer Achur he said, they had neither had horse, shawl, nor
money. The Ameer Achur came ; he concealed me, Abdul
Wahab *, while Ameer Abul Kasem said to the Ameer Achur,
" I have nothing to do with either money or shawl." The
Ameer Achur replied, " Last night your son confessed, in the
presence of Mirza Abdul Wahab, that his father had obtained
one shawl and fifty pieces of gold. Ameer Abul Kasem
saw that it was no use denying it. He could not help

* Here Abdul Wahab's words are illegible. J. W.

312 APPENDIX.

saying, " Well, I did have them." The Ameer Achur said,
" Why did you act thus ? you have been lying ; and lies will
not do in dealing with Europeans." Ameer Abul Kasem
replied, " I am sorry for what I have done."

From Deh Mulla we proceeded six parasangs to Datnaghan,
and stayed outside the city. Thence we went forward four
parasangs very pleasantly, to the city of Dowlat Abad, and
lodged outside the castle. Thence we went nine parasangs,
and reached Ahuwan, and lodged in the caravanseray at Shah
Abbas. Next we went six parasangs to the city of Samnan.
Joseph Wolff was here treated with great honour, and lodged
in the royal palace. Abbas Kouli Khan and the Bokharese
ambassadors lodged within the city. We remained one day
to rest ourselves, and then advanced six parasangs. Joseph
WohTlodged in the castle at Laskird, in a house which heaven
seemed to have provided for him. Hence six parasangs
brought them to the town of Deh Namak. Joseph Wolff
lodged in the castle, and Abbas Kouli Khan outside the city.
In seven parasangs more we arrived at Geshlak, and halted at
the side of a river. From Geshlak Joseph Wolff went with
Mullah Mehdee, and all his own servants. Abbas Kouli Khan
too went from Geshlak, advancing six parasangs to the city of
Aburanak. At last, after seven parasangs they arrived at one
city; after twenty parasangs, they reached another; and then
after four more, they came into the country of Teheraun.

APPENDIX. 313

III.

Digest of English Policy relative to Asiatic
States ;

By CAPTAIN CONOLLY*

May the Lord render easy (this attempt), and may it be well
finished.

To my Friend the Prince, Lord of the Kingdom of Khwarazm.

After salutation and benediction, O Friend, in con-
formity with your wish, I have put in order, briefly, the
circumstances of the English Government with the kingdoms
of Hindustaun, Affghanistaun, Iraun (Persia), and Russia.
When they (the circumstances) have reference to proximity,
to distance, or to the places of Turkistaun, this sketch may
prove of use to you as a memorandum ; and I entreat of Your
Majesty to investigate the correctness of it, as well by com-
paring it with historical books, as by questioning every one
who may possess a due acquaintance with the above-named
countries, and a (certain) person | may be unbiassed.

But the men of Turkistaun, for the most part, had not
heard of the English people till half a year ago, when intelli-
gence arrived that they (the English) had sent a large army to
Candahar and Cabul, and had driven out the rulers of those
countries, in the cause of Shah Shuja-al-Mulk Durrani, the
former King of Affghanistaun, who had been during some

* This important document was given to Dr. Wolff by order of the
Ameer of Bokhara.

t This may allude to the Prince addressed, as if the writer trusted
he would judge impartially.

314 APPENDIX.

years a guest of those (English) people in Hindustaun.
Moreover, that after assisting and succouring Shah Kamran in
the affair of the siege of Heraut by the Kajar army, they had
dispatched one of their chiefs to Heraut, who for a length of
time expended much money in repairing the walls of the
citadel, as well as in restoring the cultivation (of the lands)
which the Kajar army had devastated.

After various rumours, the report gained ground to this
effect, " That Shah Shuja-al-Mulk was a puppet in the hands of
the English, whose sole aim it was to seize for themselves all
the region of Affghanistaun, either by force or bribery; and,
also, that they wish to get all other countries, as much as pos-
sible, like as they had brought the kingdoms of Hindustaun,
one province after another, into their possession, till they had
rendered themselves absolute sovereigns of that region. Be-
sides this, that they ought to break down (overthrow) the reli-
gion of Muhammed, so that they may abolish the Mussulmaun
Institutes."

Yet, my patron! the real state of the affairs of the Indian
Government, in Affghanistaun and in Turkistaun, was not
rightly ascertained; but, at length, these reports of the
common people obtained credit: the foundation of which
may be referred to the enemies of the Government (may it be
durable !) of the servants of Shah Shuja-al-Mulk, and their ally
which the English Government is. The circumstances, which
I shall here relate, are solely for the purpose of manifesting and
proving the falsity of those reports, by means of exhibiting
the correctness of conduct which the English have main-
tained in every country above named, from the beginning to
the present time.

In the first place, let your mind be applied to a consi-
deration of these circumstances in the countries of Hindu-
staun. One hundred and fifty years ago, a company, in
mercantile business, of the English people, who at that time
had become one of the richest and most eminent of the
nations of Europe, by reason of the extent of commerce which

APPENDIX. 315

they possessed in every quarter of the globe, obtained the
permission of the Emperor Aurang Zeb, Sovereign of Delhi,
and a descendant of Sultan Babar of Farghana; and to settle
in his country they got leave to build a port for themselves at
Calcutta, which was then an insignificant village, near the salt
sea of Hindustaun; and, in a short time, through the col-
lecting together of wealth, which is always the consequence
of commerce, that little village was converted into a great
city. Some years previous to the English becoming settled in
Calcutta, they had obtained two other ports also on the sea
coast of India, one of which was named Madras, and the other
Bombay. Several European nations, in like manner, for the
convenience of their trade in the country of Hindustaun, had
appropriated and established ports for themselves ; the Rulers
and Rajahs of Hindustaun assenting, and desiring that the
Europeans should form ports in their dominions for the pur-
pose of trade, because they were sensible of a general benefit
to themselves from the transit of merchandise. Moreover, as
the above-mentioned nations paid all the expenses of forming
their ports, they became wholesale proprietors of their ports;
so much so that they had the right to make exchanges and
transferences one with another: in this way, the port of
Madras, which a Rajah of the Hindus had granted to the
English, and which remained some years in the hands of
another European nation called French, and the port of
Bombay which had originally been given to a great trading
nation, called Portuguese, and which had been in their pos-
session for the period of one hundred and thirty years, were
transferred to the English.

It is also well known that, after the decease of Aurang
Zeb, the power and splendour of the descendants of Timur in
Hindustaun turned to decline for the space of ninety-five years;
so that the fifth Emperor of Delhi after the said deceased
emperor, that is Shah Aulam, became entirely subdued and
vanquished, and deprived of sight by the hands of an assem-
blage of Hindu Rajahs called Marhattas. At this time the

316 APPENDIX.

whole space of Hindustaun became the theatre of war,
slaughter, and devastation. In the mean time, the chiefs of
Hindus and Mussulmauns, every one of whom was seeking his
own advancement as well as the ruin of others, and foreign
nations, as, for example, the Persians in the invasion of Nadir
Shah, and the AfFghauns in the invasion of Ahmad Shah Dur-
rani, seeing the opportunity favourable to themselves, made
inroads into those delightful regions: yet, for the space of
fifty years after the death of King Aurang Zeb, the English
people keeping aloof entirely from those contests remained
at their posts, transmitting their merchandize to England as
well as other ports.

Afterwards, in those times, some enemies from amongst
the people of Hindustaun, who were envious of the fortune
and prosperity of them (the English) and ignorant of their
means and resources, unjustly made an attack on them ; but,
previous to that violence of their enemies, the English had
built for themselves the port of Calcutta. The English chiefs
there made application for peace and ease ; and as they had
no other resource, they at last solicited aid from their own
Sovereign. For a while, those unjust people became victo-
rious, but eventually, by the right of war, the English took
possession of their territory for retaliation and future pro-
tection. During some years, from the increase of the burning
fire of the envy of other chiefs, who were less near, they
found enough to do; for, continually, new and fresh enemies
sprang up against them. The English chiefs wished for and
sought no war; yet remained always prepared to repel
aggression, and by divine favour they caused to break (or fail)
every insurrection or attack of their opponents, till forty
years ago, when having routed the forces of the Marhattas,
before noticed, they beheld themselves masters of the greatest
portion of India.

Some chiefs of Hindustaun, at a more early epoch, con-
tracted friendship and formed alliance with the English State,
through favour of which they remained untouched : at length,

APPENDIX. 317

those who remained contracted with them the bonds of
friendship sat under their State, became tributaries, and
bound themselves by promises to commit the arbitration of
all differences amongst themselves to the supreme English
Government. Some, too, whose territories were more remote
and away from the frontiers of the English State, made peace,
saying, " we will remain in our own independence ;" yet they
promised that the countries appertaining to the English State
should in no wise be molested. Of this kind was latterly
Ranjit Singh, the Sovereign of the Sikh nation ; and though
formerly the Affghauns were dominant over the Sikhs, yet in
these latter years, Ranjit Singh having become victorious,
many of the provinces of those people are come under his
sway, by reason of the domestic quarrels which have sprung
up among the Affghauns.

In the manner just now described, the town of Calcutta,
which had been raised solely for the purpose of trade, by
reason of the violence and injustice of the opponents and the
ignorant people of the other provinces of India, very soon
became a new great (seat of) empire, and one of the multitude
of various foreign provinces of the English State. Under
the shade of this exalted State, the country of Hindustaun has
remained happy and prosperous in every way : and an army
of two hundred thousand renowned regulars, together with
materials for war in perfect condition, which the English
Government keeps continually ready, is at most times occu-
pied in military discipline against the day of need, lest any
foreign foe should appear. And you must not form the idea
that whatever tribute the English Government receives, they
collect it for the purpose of transmission to the treasury in
England ; that is not the case : the tribute and revenues of
India are expended in the government and for the advantage
itself of that country. The profits, which the English people
derive from the possession of that rich country, are such
produce in various ways, as results from the complete enjoy-
ment of its commerce.

318 APPENDIX.

The English Government, however able to do it, never
meddles or interferes in the usages or the laws of the various
people and nations of the natives there ; for which reason
those people remain content and happy. By conjecture, a
seventh part of their subjects in that country are Mussul-
mauns, the rest mostly Hindus ; a few however are Jews, and
Christians, and some others, as for instance the fire-worshippers.
In regard to all the religious rights and temporal customs of
the people of Islam, the law is fixed according to the rule of
their ancient institutes, but in cases of doubt and of calling
for evidence, the Muhammedan Cazis and Mullahs, are sum-
moned to explain and direct the suit. The Brahman law too,
which applies to the greater portion of the above-named
people, is established according to their ancient practice and
customs : and to all the subjects they (the English) have given
protection, free from bias or partiality. Each individual enjoys
like privileges with the whole body of the State ; they give not
preference to any one over another. The Government, too,
never interferes in the religious matters of its numerous and
mixed subjects, unless for the purpose of warding off dis-
turbance, which possibly might be occasioned by the quar-
relling of the different sects, for the English confess that there
is One who owns the right of judgment with regard to the
consciences and belief of man, viz. God Almighty, the Creator :
and from this sentiment they act, with all caution and for-
bearance, in the point of religion everywhere. Therefore,
Your Majesty, my friend, will decide as to what degree of
truth there can be in the saying that they intend to advance
their power only ; as far as concerns the Mussulmaun faith it
is a mere calumnious invention, to which artful people give
publicity for their own purpose : and the assertion is wholly
false, that when at any time their temporal goods are con-
sumed, they labour to get possession of their neighbour's
property, by exciting war and strife. Forty years ago, when
the English chiefs vanquished the multitude of Hindus, the
Marhattas, as has been noted before, they found the blind

APPENDIX. 310

and helpless emperor, the descendant of Timur, viz. Shah
Aalam, in the hands of the merciless plunderers. At that time
what was their conduct towards that descendant of ancient
friend Aurang Zeb ? They brought him back to the city of
Shahjahanabad, and settled on him and his posterity, from
generation to generation, imperial titles and revenues.

Again, if that Friend, or His Majesty, will now turn his
regard towards Rum, the Turkish Empire, he will there see,
that the English Government having formed an alliance with
the Government of Russia, as well as with those of other
of the greatest nations of the Christians, have leagued toge-
ther to strengthen and support the Turkish Empire, which is
the most eminent of the present Mussulmaun States; since it
is apparent that the ruin and breaking up of the Turkish
Empire would produce trouble in the kingdoms of Europe
adjoining to Turkey. These are matters which have no
connexion with sect or creed, but that which the Almighty
has directed, when He commands all the people of the earth
to live in peace and equity one with another; and in the
opinion of the considerate and wise, like that Friend, or Your
Majesty, (t. e., the person addressed,) a history like that last
recounted will have superior value over a hundred vague
reports, however artfully fabricated or disseminated.

Now be pleased to turn the attention to the conduct and
procedure of the English State in Iraun, Persia, and AfFghan-
istaun. Near forty years ago, a very powerful people of
Europe, named the French, who, at that time carried on
war with the English nation, formed the design of stirring
up trouble and commotion in Hindustaun; but as the way
by sea was closed by the ships of war of the English, a
body of the French by land assembled on the frontiers of
Persia, in order that from that quarter they might make
an attack on Hindustaun. Futt Ali Shah was friendly dis-
posed towards the English Government, and as he did not
perceive that, in injuring them, any advantage would accrue

320 APPENDIX.

to himself, he refused the request of the French nation ; he
made an agreement with the English Government, that on no
account would he admit that hostile nation into the kingdom
of Persia. During eight years Futt Ali Shah remained faithful
to this promise ; but at the close of this period, the French
sent a message to this effect, that if he, the King of Persia,
would befriend them, they would, for mutual protection, make
war on the Russians, who were alike enemies to the Persian
and French Governments. The English Government at that
time was not able to assist the King of Persia, because it was
at peace with the Russian Government. Futt Ali Shah, not
knowing the exact state of feeling of his former friends, the
English, brought several French officers to his capital of
Teheraun, and requested that they would commence instruct-
ing and exercising the Persian army according to the rules
of European warfare. At that time, the English Government
thought it necessary to construct an additional barrier for
the security of Hindustaun: accordingly, Envoys were sent
on the part of the Government of India to the Court of the
chief of the Durranies, Shah Shuja-al-Mulk, who at that time
ruled over the whole country of Affghanistaun ; a treaty was
entered into with that king, to the intent that, whenever it
should be necessary, the two Governments of Affghanistaun
and India should unite for the purpose of driving back and
opposing the Guzl-bashis and their European associates.
The English Envoys took leave of Shah Shuja-al-Mulk and
returned towards India; but before they had had time to
cross the frontier of Shah Shuja-al-Mulk^s country, that Sove-
reign had been dethroned by his own brother Mahmud Shah.
The English Government rendered no assistance at that time
to Shah Shuja, because he wished that it should not interfere
with the domestic quarrels of the Affghaun nation ; he merely
wished that it should unite with the Aifghauns in repelling or
attacking foreigners. But as the English Envoys had been
treated with honour and respect at the Court of Shah Shuja-

APPENDIX. 321

al-Mulk, the English Government afforded that Sovereign
royal protection in India, where, as an honoured guest, he
resided for the space of thirty years.

After these events in Affghanistaun, which have just been
explained, the King of Persia saw that the French were not
able to afford him the necessary assistance in his war with
Russia; he therefore sent away the French officers, and
renewed his engagement with the English Government. It
so happened, that during this interval the English Govern-
had also became hostile to that of Russia, and it considered
that the Persians would be a valuable obstacle to the Rus-
sians; therefore they agreed to a treaty in these terms, "that
the warlike stores of Futt Ali Shah should be prepared in the
best manner; they supplied him with officers who should
instruct his army in the mode of managing European guns,
and also with arms; they agreed also to pay him a yearly
allowance of two hundred thousand tomauns, by way of
assisting him in his preparations, so long as he should be
at war with any European nation, and provided that the
fault lay with that nation (and not with him)." The French
unavoidably abandoned the design in India which they had
entertained. The English officers, who were first sent to
Persia for the purpose of instructing the Guzl-bashis, along
with that corps, fought several battles with the Russians:
after four years these hostilities were put an end to, because
the English Government again became on a friendly footing
with the Russians, and effected a reconciliation between the
Emperor and the King of Persia. From that time to the
present, the English and Russian Governments have con-
tinued on friendly terms with each other. The king of
Persia, however, made war with the Russians, confiding in his
own strength, by which he lost several of his most valuable
provinces, which lie northwards to the shores of the Caspian
Sea. By conquering these provinces, the Russian Govern-
ment acquired considerable power over the remainder of the
Persian dominions; the English Government had foreseen

Vol. II. Y

322 APPENDIX.

this result, and had repeatedly advised the King of Persia
not to contend (with the Russians), because in extent of
dominion, and the means of making war, they were far supe-
rior to the Persians. Futt Ali Shah, however, disregarded
this friendly advice of the English ; and the latter, from a
sense of justice, were not able to do anything more, though
they saw, that they would necessarily suffer from the con-
fusion as to the limits of the Persian Empire, and the dimi-
nution of its authority.

Hence it is plain and evident, that the practical wisdom
of the English Government is exercised merely for its own
preservation; and by considering this matter, it is seen and
established, that the affairs which have lately occurred in
Affghanistaun, rendered it necessary that the English Govern-
ment, as often happens, should well consider the position and
circumstances of the Saduzai Governments.

Some years after, Shah Mahmud had deprived Shah Shuja of
his Government, the former murdered his minister, Fath Khan
Barakzai, at the time that the numerous brothers of that
minister, having become rebellious, were acting with oppres-
sion in all the provinces of the Affghaun Government, with the
exception of Heraut, which was held by the Prince Kamran ;
and when Shah Mahmud found that his power was insufficient
to recover his country, he took up his abode in the city of
Heraut, until the time of his death. Several times after Shah
Shuja-al-Mulk had retired into India, he was extremely anxious
to recover his kingdom, but he had no treasure with which to
enlist an army for that purpose, and his English hosts, true to
their word, neither assisted him with men nor money; in fact,
four years before this, the English Government had no idea
that Shah Shuja-al-Mulk would again acquire authority in
Affghanistaun, and at that period it sent an Envoy, named Mr.
Alexander Burnes, into that country, in order that he might
establish a friendly relationship with the various chiefs who
were exercising government there; and that the trade of
India might be freely exercised, and extended over the

APPENDIX. 323

countries to the west of the rivers Abbok and Indus. The
Barakzai chiefs welcomed Mr. Alexander Burnes, because they
hoped on all sides, that they might attain their objects by the
assistance of other Governments; for example, the Barakzai
brothers, of Kandahar, because they dreaded the King, wished
for aid that they might ruin him, and take possession of his
country ; and the principal ruler of Cabul, Dost Muhammed
Khan, particularly desired assistance, that, by means of it, he
might bring under his rule the province of Peshawar, which
Ranjit Singh, the ruler of the Sikhs, had in war taken from
his brother ; and that, by this means, he might raise himself
in Affghanistaun. To all the requests that the chiefs made to
Mr. Alexander Burnes, that gentleman replied, that from the
very first day of intercourse with the AfFghaun nation; that is,
during the space of twenty-eight years, the English Govern-
ment had carefully abstained from any interference in its in-
ternal disputes, and certainly as to himself he had no wish to
be mixed up with them in any way. Mr. Burnes further ex-
plained, that the Government of India was only desirous that
its trade should be increased by means of the chiefs ruling
Affghanistaun at that time, and that it hoped that these chiefs
would respect each other's rights, and live together in peace
and security ; otherwise, it would not be possible that trade
could be beneficially established with their country. Again,
Mr. Alexander Burnes said, the English Government had no
authority to request Ranjit Singh, who was a Sovereign
possessed of independent power, to restore a country which,
in open warfare, he had taken from his former enemies;
but that the English Government was ready to effect a
peace between the Sikhs and the Affghauns, so that there
might be no recurrence of hostilities between them, and
that Dost Muhammed Khan might remain peaceably in his
present position. The Barakzai chiefs were not satisfied with
these replies of Mr. Burnes ; and previous to his coming into
Affghanistaun, they had hoped that they might obtain their
wishes by the assistance of Muhammad Shah Kajar, to whom

Y2

324 APPENDIX.

they had written petitions in the style of dependents, saying,
"As the King of Persia was justly the heir to all the pro-
vinces of AfFghanistaun, they entreated that he would march
and assist them, his slaves, in their opposition to both Shah
Kamran and the Sikhs." At the same time, all the chiefs pre-
ferred the aid of the English to that of the Persians; they
therefore waited some time, for the purpose of seeing whether
or not they could obtain the help of the Europeans. Mr.
Alexander Burnes, however, always told them, that the English
Government did not make promises; therefore, having no
hope of assistance from that quarter, they then became
busily engaged in their arrangement with the Persians. Mu-
hammed Shah wrote to the Candahar chiefs and told them,
" that if they would aid and assist the Kajar army, so that
Heraut might be taken, the King of Persia would grant their
request, provided they would only attend him to that place."
He sent a message also to Dost Muhammud Khan, saying, "After
the approaching New-year's day, the King of Persia will
send you an army, so that you may settle] matters with the
Sikhs."

The English Government became thoroughly acquainted
with these matters ; because, on the one hand, the Barakzai
Chiefs showed Muhammad Shah KajaVs letters to Mr. Burnes,
in order that they might provoke him; and on the other
hand, when the Envoy of the English Government, who was
present at the Court of Muhammed Shah Kajar, asked the
servants of that King as to the purport of these writings and
promises, he was told, that from a remote period, the country
of AfFghanistaun had been connected with Persia, and that
the petitions, which on this understanding the Chiefs before
mentioned had written, were shown to him. When matters
came to this point, it became very necessary that the English
Government should make a decided arrangement for its own
protection ; accordingly it clearly intimated to the Govern-
ment of Cabul, " England will not permit you, by any
stratagem, and merely to gratify your hatred and promote

APPENDIX. 325

your designs, to inflame the Affghaun nation by means of the
Kajar King ; nor will it allow you to bring a Guzl-bash army
for the purpose of creating disturbance and commotion on
the borders of India : if, therefore, you do not put an end to
this treachery, the English Government will give its assistance
to the Sadozai King, Shah Shuja-al-Mulk, who, from the first,
was the cause of the friendship existing between the Govern-
ments of India and AfFghanistaun, and who, no doubt, will
act in a just and manly manner towards both countries." By
these means it became perfectly clear that King Muhammed
Shah Kajar, by any right or possession, had no authority over
any one in the Durrane country; therefore, his claim was
considered by Shah Kamran as an affair between two sepa-
rate and independent rulers. The commencement of this
affair occurred not a year before this happened ; therefore it
is necessary to recur to the circumstances of that period.
When Abbas Mirza, the heir apparent of Persia, manifested a
design of assembling an army at the point of Heraut, the
English Envoy, who was in attendance on Futt Ali Shah, asked
what was intended by it; and that since' the plain intention of
the treaties, which the English Government had entered into
with the Governments of Persia and AfFghanistaun, was to
increase the security of India, it was at all times important
that the English Envoy, who resided at the Court of Teheraun,
should be well acquainted with all the affairs of the King of
Persia, lest, by any of those affairs, the designs of the English
Government should in any way be thwarted. Futt Ali Shah
replied, " That the object of that expedition was, that Abbas
Mirza might completely prevent, and put a stop to, a system
of plunder, and the selling of human beings, which were
carried on by several of the dependencies of Heraut, in con-
nexion with the Turkomauns of Mowr, and the neighbouring-
places." The English Envoy then answered, " That as the
King of Persia was an independent sovereign, the English
Government allowed that, when another nation acted with
violence, oppression or even incivility towards either his

326 APPENDIX.

country or subjects, he, the King of Persia, had a perfect right
to obtain redress by force of arms ; but as the English Go-
vernment was at peace with the Affghauns, it could not
permit war in any part whatever of the Affghaun dominions ;
on this account, therefore, the English gentleman, who be-
longed to the Kajar army, did not in that expedition attend
the Deputy of Persia (i.e. Abbas Mirza). For the same reason,
after the accession of Muhammed Shah, the English Envoy,
who constantly resided at his Court, in the same manner,
asked " What was the reason for the assembling of an army
on the borders of Khorassaun, and the adjacent countries ?"
He was told the object was, that the " King (of Persia) might
accomplish those designs which his father had commenced."
At this time, also, the gentlemen of the English Government
were not supplied with any other answer than that which they
had before given to Futt Ali Shah.

After a little time, however, the events which have been
already mentioned occurred; then, quite another story was
told ; when the English Envoy first spoke to the servants of
Muhammed Shah Kajar respecting the affair of Heraut, the
latter personage confessed that he should be well pleased to
make peace, and he gave his consent that that Envoy, who
was entitled " Minister Plenipotentiary,"' and whose name was
Mr. Mac Neil, should be a mediator in the affair. And when
Shah Kamran saw, that, although Heraut was a strong fort,
yet, from the abundance of artillery, and the superior manner
in which the Kajar army was equipped, it must, ultimately,
be taken and destroyed, he likewise was willing that the
before-mentioned Minister Plenipotentiary and Envoy should,
by means of negotiation, settle his affairs : therefore, Mr. Mac
Neil used his best efforts to bring the business of Heraut to
an amicable conclusion. He thought and considered, that an
army, which comes to make war in a country, or to besiege a
city, whether in the end it succeed or not, by the ruin and
confusion which it inflicts on all the inhabitants, is able in one
month to destroy the cultivation and population of a thousand

APPENDIX. 327

years; and that, by the great injury (it does) to the Govern-
ment, it will destroy the wealth and power which, in (their)
prosperity, the inhabitants may have acquired. Again, where-
ever a " torch from the fire of war bears a spark," no person
can calculate how far it will consume.

After much correspondence with the servants of the two
Governments at Meshed, Teheraun, and Heraut, Mr. Mac Neil
obtained, from Shah Kamran himself, a written agreement to
this effect : " That the taking away slaves from the borders
of Persia, and selling them, should cease, and that all anxiety
and hostility should be completely stopped and ended; fur-
ther, that every Guzl-bash slave in the country of Heraut, as
far as was possible, should be restored (to his country), and
that proper protection and treatment should be observed
towards all Persian merchants and travellers who might arrive
at Heraut." And in order that the cause of anger and alarm,
which had brought Muhammed Shah to these parts, might be
set aside, Mr. Mac Neil declared, " If the King of Persia would
at once desist from the siege of Heraut, and stop the war, he
would affix the seal of the English Government to the written
declaration of Shah Kamran as a security (for the fulfilment
of that) declaration of the King of the Saduzais." But Mu-
hammed Shah then said, " That he would be satisfied with no
other conditions, than that the whole of the people of Heraut
should be subject to the Government of Persia." When Mr.
Mac Neil distinctly stated, that the English Government
reckoned the Affghauns a completely free people, and con-
sidered them as the first barrier in behalf of India; and as the
King of Persia, by his unwillingness to give even necessary
answers on the subject of Heraut, and by his dealings with
the Barakzai Chiefs, had plainly shown that it was his inten-
tion, by his own means, to break down that barrier, and
diminish the security and tranquillity of India, the English
Government would prevent his designs by all the means that
it thought proper.

Agreeably to this declaration, the following message of

328 APPENDIX.

comfort was despatched to the men in the fort of Heraut:
" You will receive aid and assistance from the English Go-
vernment; therefore, at all hazards, you must continue to
fight and not give up the fort." And as the Barakzai Chiefs
showed no fear or concern at the statements of the gentlemen
of the English Government, the Government of India neces-
sarily assisted Shah Shuja-al-Mulk, that he might again re-
cover Candahar and Cabul. At that time, also, the English
Government dispatched an army from India by sea; it landed
on an island called Kharak, near the port of Bushir (in the
Persian Gulf), which belonged to the Government of Persia.
When the King (of Persia) obtained intelligence of these
affairs he withdrew his army from the siege of Heraut with
the exception of some (men) who retained possession of Gho-
rian, and two or three other places which belonged to Heraut.
The English Government stated, " That it would not remove
its army from the island of Kharak until the Persians restored
Ghorian, and the other dependencies of Heraut, to Shah
Kamran." Therefore, by reason of this declaration, the Go-
vernments of Persia and England have had no intercourse
with each other.

At last comes the subject of the English Government
interfering with the affairs of Affghanistaun. When the
Government of India promised Shah Shuja-al-Mulk that it
would give him its assistance, in gaining possession of the
countries of Cabul and Candahar, that Government explained
to that illustrious Sovereign, that it merely wished to see the
Affghaun nation strong and firm in its own authority, and that
it had no desire, in any way, to interfere with the internal
arrangements of his country ; but that, in serving him, it did
wish, that as Shah Kamran had displayed great energy in the
defence of Heraut, the Government of Shah Shuja should
acknowledge the distinct authority of that province of the Aff-
ghaun (Empire). To this Shah Shuja consented ; a treaty was
entered into accordingly, and the Government of India set
about fulfilling its engagement. From the first, it was agreed

APPENDIX. 329

that the English army should remain no longer in Shah Shuja's
country than might be considered advisable for the purpose of
restoring order to that unsettled country, or the warding off
any external injury, which (otherwise) might be adverse to the
interests of India and AfFghanistaun. According to this
agreement, the English army was to return whenever Shah
Shuja might think proper. Afterwards, in order that the
empire of Cabul might in future be secured from any external
attack, the English Government was willing to give to the
Durrani King the same assistance which, during the last few
years, it had given to the King of Persia; namely, that several
officers should be lent to him, for the purpose of instructing
his army and remaining in attendance upon him.

On the subject of the money which the English nation
expended in Heraut, and which was mentioned at the com-
mencement of this letter ; that money was expended in conse-
quence of the English sending a message to the effect, " that
although ruin might befal the inhabitants of Heraut, still they
were to manage to take care not to surrender the fort." In
truth, sums of money were on this account, expended by
Mr. Tod, who was the special English Envoy at the Court of
Shah Kamran ; and (in fact) the English Government has
faithfully performed whatsoever it was bound to do, with
regard to the desolation caused by the Kajars ; but no sum of
money would be adequate to remedy the ruin and confusion
caused by the attack of the Kajar army, and years must pass
away, before a single inhabitant of Heraut can sit beneath
the shade of a tree. May God, the Most High and Benevo-
lent, avert such a terrible desolation from all other countries !
It is equally advantageous to the Affghauns as to the English,
that the whole of Turkistaun should remain free and unem-
barrassed; and the Affghaun and English Governments are
willing to assist in this object, provided the Uzbeck chiefs
will be friendly with them, and will act with justice and
equity towards other Governments. There are only two
nations — namely, the Russians and Persians — who it is

330 APPENDIX.

thought wish to change the present state of Turkistaun ;
unless the practice of rushing upon and capturing their
people, which, up to this time, the dependencies of the
Usbeck Government have practised, shall be completely
stopped. It is good that this vile practice should be
abolished. With regard to any nation that may have had
the power and opportunity of putting a stop to such a
custom, and yet always refuses to do so, and whenever the
demand for justice shall not be sufficient, (then) there are
only two remedies ; either to make an attack on the principal
cities of the chiefs who allow their subjects to commit such
acts of oppression, or to limit their boundaries, and take
possession of such places as that from them, the offending
people, may be restrained by force. There is no room to
doubt that the Russian Government has the power to apply
its own remedy; hence the Sovereign of that magnificent
Empire has clearly shown that he wishes to increase its
power, whenever it may be necessary (to employ it), for the
protection of his people.

According to the notion of this Friend («. e. the Writer),
the Persians will be able to apply their remedy, whenever
they may collect their forces, and return towards Turkistaun.
Now I proceed to state, in your presence, several reasons for
my embracing this opinion. The bravery and courage of the
Usbecks and Turkomauns are well known to the whole world ;
but at present they do not possess the warlike stores which
the Persians have, and can easily procure ; and the expe-
rience of many years and of different countries has completely
established (the fact) that a numerous body of horsemen,
armed with swords and undisciplined, cannot stand against a
park of fire-scattering artillery and a few brave but disci-
plined men. (It is my) opinion that the power of the Persian
Government is greater than what the people of Turkistaun
imagine. For some years that Government (the Persian) has
been in an unsettled state, principally in consequence of
external wars, attended with immense expense, which the

APPENDIX. 331

Kajar King has had on every side ; but now that he is at
peace with his two ancient and powerful enemies, viz.,
the Russian and Turkish Governments, it is only necessary
for him to cast his eye over the numerous provinces and large
cities which are now comprised within his Empire, that he
may be convinced that only a small amount of peace and
order is required, and he would quickly become rich and
powerful. And with regard to the military force which the
King now possesses, it is clear, when two years ago he had it
in his power to bring to the siege of Heraut an army of forty
thousand men and eighty mounted guns, that it cannot be
reckoned less now. Again, up to the time of Muhammed
Shah's last dispute with the English Government, respecting
the affairs of Affghanistaun, the commanders and instructors
of the Persian army were Englishmen, who again withdrew,
and at times when their services were most wanted, because
they could not make war on the friends of the English
Government. This circumstance happened at the commence-
ment of the war which the Government of Persia had with
the Governments of Russia and Turkey, and also on both
occasions when Abbas Mirza and Muhammed Shah led their
armies into the country of Heraut; therefore, the power and
capability of the Kajar army have not, as yet, been well
ascertained. And besides, Abbas Mirza, on his last expedi-
tion into Khorassaun and the countries adjacent, showed, not-
withstanding the disordered state of his country, that the
brave Guzl-bashis were capable of rendering effective service ;
and without doubt, if the English Government had not, in
several ways, used its exertions, they would not have driven
back the army of Muhammed Shah from Heraut. The country
of Persia is contiguous to all the countries of Europe ; and,
from them, the Kajar King can at all times procure the best
of arms, also commanders and instructors in proportion to his
ability to pay them, who, having properly arranged his army,
and provided they were not prevented by treaty, would be
willing to make war whenever the King of Persia might send

332 APPENDIX.

them. In truth, it is well known that after his last separation
from the English Government, Muhammed Shah procured
from the French, who are well acquainted with the science of
war, muskets for thirty thousand brave (men), and several
commanders for the purpose of instructing his army. In con-
sequence of the English gentlemen not continuing in Persia
after what had occurred at Heraut, I am not acquainted with
the present state of the army of that country ; but I have no
doubt that Muhammed Shah will put it in order for the pur-
pose of attacking Turkistaun; it may be, that he will not
come this spring, or during the next summer, but he will
certainly come soon ; therefore, I consider it very necessary
and important that the Uzbeck Chiefs should consider and
make proper arrangements for future events.

From the observations (already) written, you will have
discovered that the English Government does not wish either
the Kajar or Russian nation to go beyond their present limits
in the direction of India; not because of any feeling of
hostility that it entertains towards those nations, but merely as
a matter of precaution; and it is necessary, that this observa-
tion should be well understood before we prove it; the Persian
nation especially should be told, on the contrary, that regard-
ing the affairs of Affghanistaun, the English Government was on
perfectly friendly terms with the King of the Kajars, and exerted
itself that his Empire should, by every means, obtain honour and
prosperity. Even now the English entertain no feeling of enmity
towards the Guzl-bash nation (the Persians); and as to the
dispute between Muhammed Shah (Kajar), it has an intimate
connection with the rights of Kings (in general); and when this
affair shall be settled, no cold-heartedness will remain between
the two Governments. The English wish that this reconciliation
should speedily take place, because enmity and disunion are a
source of injury to any State. The English will at all times
be anxious that Persia should be happy and prosperous within
her present limits ; (they will desire this), on account of the
ancient friendship which they have maintained with the Kajar

APPENDIX. 333

Government, as well as their own peculiar benefit ; for, when
(Persia) is at rest, and in easy circumstances, her trade with
England and India is of considerable value.

During the last two years, however, the King of Persia has
been pleased to obtain his own objects without considering
whether he was injuring or benefitting the English ; and as the
Persians have now become more or less dependent on other
nations, and at some period will probably be excited to inter-
rupt the tranquillity of India — under these circumstances, the
English Government cannot consent that the frontier of Persia
should be extended to the eastern side of Khorassaun.

On the subject of the Russians. — When the English for a
short time had a dispute with the Russians, and afterwards
exercised caution and watchfulness lest a future injury should
arise (from it), some people thought that the English enter-
tained a secret feeling of enmity to them; and others, that
the Russians had a design on India; but (all) these ideas were
wrong : the truth of this particular matter is this, that from
the time when the English and Russian Governments made
a renewal of treaties, during a period of twenty-eight years,
they entertained the same feeling of friendship towards each
other, and the welfare of each Government became united
by the great amount of trade which, between the two coun-
tries, was flowing towards Europe from the side of the Black
Sea ; and this is the best of ties, because it cannot be broken,
except with complete injury to both parties.

In the different countries which intervene between their
respective boundaries eastwards, the English and the Russians
have an equality of trade, and therefore it may sometimes
happen, that one or two individuals will strive to increase the
power of the Government to which they belong in an un-
warrantable manner; for instance, in the last affair with
Affghanistaun the Russian Ambassador who was at that time
stationed at the Court of Persia, and the Envoy of the same
nation, who was sent to Cabul for the purpose of ascertain-
ing the best means whereby to increase the trade between

334 APPENDIX.

that country and Russia, both associated themselves with
Muhammed Shah, and the Barakzai Chiefs, whose designs and
wishes they laboured to accomplish ; but, as soon as the
Emperor of Russia was informed of what they had done, he
disavowed the acts of both his servants, and after recalling
them, dismissed them from their employments; (and) as at
the same time, the King of England approved of what the
Emperor had done, it became quite evident to the whole
world, that mutual friendship existed between them. Besides
this, that Friend (i. e. His Majesty) has himself seen to what
extent the Emperor of Russia showed kindness to the servants
of the English Government, who in those days proceeded
from Khiva -for the purpose of establishing peace between
the Governments of Russia and Khwarazum. May God, the
Most High, grant that the friendship and unity of the English
and the Russians may never again suffer interruption !

But, as we have before shown, altercation has happened
between the two Governments, and may possibly occur again;
because, with regard to affairs which were under human
observation, no person in this unstable world can predict what
a single day may bring forth. Nations that are at war will
strive to injure each other in every way : so that the English
saw, that when the French wished to injure them in India, it
became therefore only an act of prudence that a barrier should
be formed on the frontier of their dominions, to prevent their
sustaining any harm from the attacks of foreigners.

The Russians also exercised a similar degree of caution.
The best protection that India would have, would be a col-
lision between the Persian and Russian Governments. Not-
withstanding the powerful and friendly Governments which
exist between the limits of the English and Russian Govern-
ments, this is quite certain, that the English Government
would, with men and money, assist in protecting and putting
the Affghauns into a proper state of defence ; for the same
reason, it wishes that the Uzbeck States should be completely
free and independent of Persia and Russia; nay more, that

APPENDIX. 335

they should be prosperous, and (sufficiently) strong to keep in
their possession the places which properly belong to them.
Therefore, the English Government will at all times be ready
and willing to become the cause of peace and concord
between the Uzbeck States and any of the nations before
mentioned ; by this means also, it wishes to increase its friend-
ship with the Uzbeck States ; and by exchanging the profits
of trade between India and Turkistaun by means of the
AfFghauns, the English Government wishes to have friendship
with both these nations, and that they should both derive
benefit from this trade. The English do not tell the Uzbecks
to consider the Russians and Persians as enemies, and that
they should trade and have intercourse only with the English ;
on the contrary, they tell the Uzbecks that they should make
those nations their friends, by forming with them just and
proper treaties with respect to the rights both of rulers and
people ; nay, more, they tell them, that with regard to trade,
they should, without partiality, act alike towards all foreign
nations, and should allow them to derive every advantage
from the intercourse, and that they are able to supply them
with the best and cheapest goods.

Now, be pleased to pardon the trouble I have occasioned
you, together with the boldness of these pictures, as well as
errors and omissions of their style ! Because my Mirza Husaini
was weak and helpless, and therefore I had no remedy, but to
describe my mission myself. Being the well-wisher of this
State, and also of the Uzbeck States, I have without ceremony,
written according to the measure of my knowledge.

Finally, it is necessary the Uzbecks should well consider
their own power and well-being; and whatsoever is to happen
is in the hand of God !

BINDING SECT. OCT 2 1968

DK Wolff, Joseph

873 Narrative of a mission to

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